Hello, everyone. It is time for another Seven Knights Re:BIRTH (hereinafter SKRB) update. From mid-March through April, the arena meta has been flipped on its head more times than I care to count. Such rapid shifts in the PvP landscape of SKRB are quite unusual. While the launch of 'Reginleif' briefly suggested a magic-deck dominance, the revamped 'Teo' has effectively dragged the offensive decks back to the top of the food chain. Meanwhile, the defensive decks have stubbornly held their ground. Join me as we break down the hero compositions for April.

April Hero Compositions by Content

The 'Dwaeo' impact: Boosting Siege Battle scores

In the PvE department, the April hero lineup was dominated by the April Fools' special hero, 'Dwaeo'. With buffs for critical damage, healing, and physical damage reduction, he has become quite the asset. Furthermore, providing 'Silence' immunity to the entire party makes him a solid choice against 'Dellons' in Siege Battles. Top-tier players are currently swapping out the previous staple 'Jin' in favor of Dwaeo. Given that he is a Legendary hero easily obtained via events, he is a steal. If future content requires silence immunity, expect him to stick around.

Meanwhile, the Advent Expedition has been flooded with specialized PvE heroes released in quick succession. Constant experimentation with these combinations has pushed top scores significantly higher. Beyond staples like 'Baekryong' and 'Guan Yu', we are seeing an influx of 'Lu Bu'—a hero once relegated strictly to PvP duties—into these squads. Take a look at the April hero compositions below to see why these shifts occurred.

Teo's remake turns the arena meta upside down

What is the state of PvP now that magic decks have vanished?

The first update of April caused quite a stir in the arena. Specifically, the offensive party rosters have seen massive changes—or, to put it more kindly, players now have more options. You could opt for the new 'Landgrid' to snipe defensive decks, or use the revamped Teo to easily strip away the opponent's Immortality effects. The meta is fluid, depending entirely on your match-up. One thing is certain: magic decks have been so thoroughly dismantled by Teo that their pick rate has hit rock bottom.

With the former king of the arena, the magic deck, effectively gone, one might have expected an era of pure offensive dominance. Instead, the defensive deck has risen from the ashes. Since the magic deck—a hard counter to the defensive build—has faded, the environment has become perfect for tanks to thrive again. Ultimately, Teo's remake and Landgrid's arrival have served to put the defensive meta right back at the top.

Current PvP is locked in a tug-of-war between offensive and defensive compositions. While defensive decks hold a slight edge in the arena, Total War and Real-time Arena tell a different story. The former has shifted toward splitting offensive heroes into two distinct squads, while Landgrid is making waves in Real-time Arena. Her skill kit simply gels too well with the manual control required in those modes.

Is the 'Mist' lead instant-death meta upon us?

With the SKRB PvP balance currently in flux, opinions on the next meta are divided. Just in time, the developer notes have revealed that a new hero, 'Mist', is joining the fray. Furthermore, SKRB has moved up the schedule for 'Ace's' rework, signaling a clear intention to bolster the instant-death deck. It’s a safe bet they are positioning this as the primary counter to the current defensive meta, much like the original game.

Having survived Teo's radical makeover, players are naturally turning their attention to Ace. However, one shouldn't sleep on Mist. Looking back at her original iteration, she occupied a unique niche by reducing the enemy's resistance to status effects. Armed with HP swapping, healing negation, stun, and silence, she was a menace. Since instant-death is technically a status effect, the synergy potential is massive.

So, what happens if the instant-death deck becomes the meta? If we follow the pattern where the fall of magic decks led to the rise of defensive ones, we have to consider what happens when defensive decks are forced to retreat. If offensive decks continue their dominance, magic decks may find even less room to breathe, leading to a clash between instant-death and offensive builds. Conversely, if offensive decks cannot overcome the instant-death threat, we might see a resurgence of magic or other hybrid compositions.

As a side note, the hero scheduled for a remake after Ace is 'Rin'. It is quite possible that after the instant-death meta settles in, Rin will arrive to shake things up once more. Either way, the SKRB meta is never going to stay still.