Rate the Unit, Day 29: Gonzales

[Integrity]

Dat Rules

- Ratings are assumed to be on Hard Mode.

- Votes need some explanation regarding their gameplay performance to be counted. If somebody else said what you want to already, quote them explicitly.

+/- ≤1 point extra regarding personality/appearance is encouraged, but no more. If you exercise your bias privileges, please do so explicitly.

- Numerical votes out of 10, or something proportional to it. Make it easy to calculate for my sake.

- Every ranking phase ends whenever I get out of bed, between 0700 and 0800 EST. Do the math for your timezone, Brits.

- I will insist you do not use the "Not X" reason on any character, where X is another unit. If you do, your vote will be thrown out.

- Characters should be rated for their performance on all possible routes (A/B / Sacae/Ilia) but should not be penalized for routes they physically cannot exist on (z.B Juno in Sacae).

- "Recruits X" or "takes you to X chapter" arguments are explicitly banned. C'mon, people, this shouldn't need to be a rule. That's not gameplay performance.

- I withhold the privilege to tell you your rating is bogus and demand you revise it if it breaks any of the above. I will not throw out votes anonymously, you will be informed and given a chance to revise.

AVERAGES

WENDY!: 0.19

Bors: 1.14

Barth: 2.07

Wolt: 2.16

Ward: 2.61

Dorothy: 3.17

Lilina: 3.53

Merlinus: 3.53

Roy: 3.54

Treck: 4.66

Oujay: 4.80

Fir: 5.08

Lot: 5.40

Sue: 5.64

Ellen: 5.73

Lugh: 5.98

Noah: 6.13

Chad: 6.42

Astohl: 7.17

Saul: 7.18

Shin: 7.42

Zealot: 7.56

Clarine: 7.78

Dieck: 7.94

Thany: 8.01

Alan: 8.52

Lance: 8.59

Marcus: 8.77

Rutger: 9.61

he doesn't deserve a subtitle

[Shadow Mir]

I know I might catch some heat for this but... 3/10 (2/10 after bias). He has great HP, strength and speed, but godawful accuracy ruins the whole picture, especially in a game like this one where accuracy is at a premium (having to play lotto every time he fights is no fun, and axelock doesn't really help, especially considering that this is probably THE absolute worst FE game to be axelocked in, nor does the fact that his supports are either slow or not worth fielding, not to mention his affinity doesn't boost accuracy, which he so desperately needs. Combine that with the fact that hero crest competition is fierce, and you've practically got Gonzales's death knell ringing... And the fact that Gonzales is ugly does him no favors.).

Edited April 2, 2012 by Metal King Slime

[Blasied]

I like Gonzo a lot, and his high HP, Strength and Speed are great but that skill is fucking pathetic. And this is the only FE game where lack of skill is a notable detriment. Still, he performs well enough in lancefest (especially against wyvern knights since they can't get terrain bonuses), can swipe a lot of terrain bonuses for himself, can actually take more than 2 physical hits due to his monstrous HP and get a cool crit bonus.

He exists to kill regular enemies. Do not try to make him fight bosses.

7.75/10 after a +1 bias bonus for being a nice guy.

[Onmi]

I'M GONZALES! I AM STRONG! BEAT ME UP, AND EARN SILVER POINTS!!!

... Oh right the rating. Well Gonzo gets HM bonuses, the ability to comes several levels lower on one route with the same stats, some of the best promotion gains in a game with huge promotion gains, and really only needs a Secret Book to sort out his horrible fucking skill (Otherwise have fun hitting with low accuracy weapons with that Skill).

Still he has Hero Crest contention, and I just do not like Gonzo, So I'm giving him 4/10 with a - Bias point.

I also don't have any good pictures of the Great Gonzales, so have this instead.

Edited April 1, 2012 by Onmi

[OrangeCrush980]

Godly HP and strength and good enough speed looks like a winning combination. But then you remember this is FE6, and watch as Gonzo fails to kill an enemy he doubles and OHKOs because he misses half the time or more. Still, that's a lot better than most of the crappy units in this game.

7.5/10

[Biabarr]

6/10

For an axe user, he is pretty cool. He has HM bonuses which are always nice. His HP and Strength can grow to be insane too. The brigand critical is also great. However, he has a problem which I usually stereotype for axe users, which is terrible accuracy. He is also pretty ugly, but his personality makes up for that. I only have one pic of Gonzales, so I guess I will post it.

[Baldrick]

Gonzales is a very durable unit, with insane HM bonuses, but he has a glaring weakness; he simply can't inflict enough damage on his opponent. His skill is through the roof, and his weapons all have plenty of hit on them. WTC after promotion is, frankly, overkill at this point, since he's lucky if his damage goes into the double digits, even against generic mages. His growths are spread even across the board, with no high growths so he can deviate from his averages by a long way, and his promotion gains are pretty pathetic, so there's not much hope for him.

On the other hand, he has absolutely no competition for his promotion item, so unless you're selling it, you might as well promote him, and he has several fast supports with the best units in the game. He's also useful for chip damage, and when you absolutely have to connect to finish off an opponent, the first unit you look for should always be Gonzales.

7/10

[Frosty]

High HP and STR; with good SPD is nice; although I'd need to see that SKL bump up.

He'd be nice against regular enemies and the lance-wielding bosses thanks to that CRIT bonus he has.

7.0

@Onmi

I'm so gonna check pixiv now for those pics!

Edited April 1, 2012 by Frostbite

[Elieson]

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Enemy Cavalier dodged the attack.

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Enemy Cleric dodged the attack.

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Basic Axe Attack is treated as a critical hit!

Gonzales missed enemy General.

4/10. I simply do not play the Powerball lottery by giving myself a handicap, and I wouldn't do the same with Gonzales.

Edited April 1, 2012 by Elieson

[Integrity]

I have no idea what relevance this picture has to Gonzales but it is amazing on every level. It now exists forever on my hard drive as zeisyouhooker.jpg.

Edited April 1, 2012 by Integrity

[Bluedoom]

Gonzales is a beast. He has high spd, high str, and high crit as a berserker, along with good con for axes. He has two flaws- bad skill, and no mount. So he's basically a more inaccurate Rutger who hits harder. I say its not too bad when you factor in HM bases. And I simply love using Gonzales(and feel bad for him too)

7.5/10(bias point included)

EDIT: 7.5. Although I love Gonzales a lot, 8.5 was a bit too much.

Edited April 1, 2012 by Marth

[Darros]

/miss

2/10

Being objective here, I have no idea how his bad skill is completely overlooked by just about everyone while units like Ward have the same issues and it isn't ignored with him. Ward is even around more and recruits himself! Yeah, I really like Gonzo because BERSERKER, but he kind of really sucks.

[Agro]

Gonzales is a very durable unit, with insane HM bonuses, but he has a glaring weakness; he simply can't inflict enough damage on his opponent. His skill is through the roof, and his weapons all have plenty of hit on them. WTC after promotion is, frankly, overkill at this point, since he's lucky if his damage goes into the double digits, even against generic mages. His growths are spread even across the board, with no high growths so he can deviate from his averages by a long way, and his promotion gains are pretty pathetic, so there's not much hope for him.

On the other hand, he has absolutely no competition for his promotion item, so unless you're selling it, you might as well promote him, and he has several fast supports with the best units in the game. He's also useful for chip damage, and when you absolutely have to connect to finish off an opponent, the first unit you look for should always be Gonzales.

7/10

Sorry, is this a joke, or...?

[Espinosa]

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Enemy Cavalier dodged the attack.

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Enemy Cleric dodged the attack.

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Basic Axe Attack is treated as a critical hit!

Gonzales missed enemy General.

4/10. I simply do not play the Powerball lottery by giving myself a handicap, and I wouldn't do the same with Gonzales.

I don't think Gonzales's accuracy issues are limited to just him. Allen should have around the same hit rates with Javelins when Gonzo joins (unless you focus on training him above all others and give him that early Knight's Crest).

[DarthMikey]

While he has great HM bonuses, 7 SKL isn't exactly good regardless, and his 15% growth won't save it. He has loads of HP, Strength, and Speed, as others have said, but that's essentially all he is. His defense isn't remarkable either, and what will he have in RES at even 20/20? 2 RES? He has Crest competition in Rutger and Dieck, too.

5.5/10

[PuffPuff]

6/10

For an axe user, he is pretty cool. He has HM bonuses which are always nice. His HP and Strength can grow to be insane too. The brigand critical is also great. However, he has a problem which I usually stereotype for axe users, which is terrible accuracy. He is also pretty ugly, but his personality makes up for that. I only have one pic of Gonzales, so I guess I will post it.

If only he had green skin and was the incredible hulk, or a Namek. I'd smile to that. ;)

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Enemy Cavalier dodged the attack.

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Enemy Cleric dodged the attack.

Gonzales used Basic Axe Attack.

Basic Axe Attack is treated as a critical hit!

Gonzales missed enemy General.

4/10. I simply do not play the Powerball lottery by giving myself a handicap, and I wouldn't do the same with Gonzales.

Especially since the RNG is more of a gamble in both this game and Thracia than any other game in the series.

-----

Gonzales is actually better to use in the HM than the NM because of the better skill that he gets with his HM bonuses. In the Normal Mode, your better to go with Geese. In the Hard Mode, Gonzales.

So...

8.5/10

Edited May 20, 2012 by リンダ

[Shadow Mir]

Gonzales is actually better to use in the HM than the NM because of the better skill that he gets with his HM bonuses. In the Normal Mode, your better to go with Geese. In the Hard Mode, Gonzales.

You do realize that even on hard mode, using him is still as much of a gamble, if not even more so because his skill's still pisspoor? Seriously, poor research destroys arguments.

Edited April 1, 2012 by Metal King Slime

[Dark Sage]

Alan has accuracy issues: sweet man

Gonzales has accuracy issues: douchebag

can sit on peaks and has a chance (if not really reliable) one of ORKOing a lot of enemy types when trained 7/10.

[Thor Odinson]

I don't think Gonzales's accuracy issues are limited to just him. Allen should have around the same hit rates with Javelins when Gonzo joins (unless you focus on training him above all others and give him that early Knight's Crest).

Alan has the option of switching to swords for accuracy. Gonzo is stuck in axelock forever and ever.

Gonzo is unfortunate enough to be thrust into a game where the skill stat matters and axelock is a curse. Were he in FE7 or FE8, no doubt he would've been great, but in FE6, his hitrates are extremely shaky, and even with several Secret Book investments, it only gets to halfway decent on select enemies (read: not a lot). Were he in FE7, Great HP/STR/SPDaftertraining would've been a godsend, but in FE6, axelock is probably the worst kind of weapon lock you can be stuck in, especially if you have poor skill. Gonzo's base of 7 and 15% growth is not doing him any favors, and unless you don't promote one of Rutger or Dieck he's waiting until chapter 16 to promote for his bonuses. Sure, 5 skill on promotion is nice, and that does help him greatly in Ilia, but he's not going to go anywhere in Sacae where he can't even hit the most common enemy types. "Oh, but there's Swordreaver against myrms and swordTroopers!" Swordreaver is a whooping SIXTY FIVE hit. He's still not hitting anybody with those hitrates against the dodgiest enemies.

Can potentially become useful in Ilia but in Sacae good fucking luck 4/10 (6 in Ilia, 2 in Sacae, averages those two together)

No bias points either way. I don't hate on people because they aren't lesexy and Gonzo's at least a really nice guy so he can have a neutral.

Edited April 1, 2012 by Luminescent Blade

[Shadow Mir]

Alan has the option of switching to swords for accuracy. Gonzo is stuck in axelock forever and ever.

Gonzo is unfortunate enough to be thrust into a game where the skill stat matters and axelock is a curse. Were he in FE7 or FE8, no doubt he would've been great, but in FE6, his hitrates are extremely shaky, and even with several Secret Book investments, it only gets to halfway decent on select enemies (read: not a lot). Were he in FE7, Great HP/STR/SPDaftertraining would've been a godsend, but in FE6, axelock is probably the worst kind of weapon lock you can be stuck in, especially if you have poor skill. Gonzo's base of 7 and 15% growth is not doing him any favors, and unless you don't promote one of Rutger or Dieck he's waiting until chapter 16 to promote for his bonuses. Sure, 5 skill on promotion is nice, and that does help him greatly in Ilia, but he's not going to go anywhere in Sacae where he can't even hit the most common enemy types. "Oh, but there's Swordreaver against myrms and swordTroopers!" Swordreaver is a whooping SIXTY FIVE hit. He's still not hitting anybody with those hitrates against the dodgiest enemies.

Can potentially become useful in Ilia but in Sacae good fucking luck 4/10

My sentiments exactly.

Also, it goes to show that Gonzales is quite the Base Breaker, does it not?

[Onmi]

actually after a few points, I'm dropping my score to 4 with a Negative Bias Point

[Integrity]

actually after a few points, I'm dropping my score to 4 with a Negative Bias Point

Kindly go back and edit your original vote, would you?

[Thor Odinson]

My sentiments exactly.

Also, it goes to show that Gonzales is quite the Base Breaker, does it not?

Base Breaker?

[Shadow Mir]

Base Breaker?

Long story short, someone who opinions are divided on.

[Thor Odinson]

I see.