It is time for the [Meca Ranking] of Seven Knights Re:BIRTH. Since the debut of 'Clemis' and 'Awakened Dellons', we have seen a fierce tug-of-war between offensive and defensive teams. If you look purely at pick rates, the offensive squads are holding a slight edge, forcing the defensive teams to scramble to survive Dellons' onslaught. In this desperate struggle, players have been dusting off heroes like 'Sun Wukong' and 'Elysia', while some have even resorted to 'Guan Yu' or 'Spike' to craft truly eccentric defensive setups. Let's dive into the details with the latest Arena team formation statistics.

The defensive team's desperate contortions to withstand the onslaught

Offensive teams have dominated the top of the Arena pick rates for two consecutive weeks. Led by the awakened power of Dellons, 'Karl Heron, Ragna, and Lu Bu' are tied for first place with a 52.3% pick rate. As these aggressive hero compositions surge, the defensive teams were the first to mount a response, bringing in the awakened hero Clemis as the anchor for a variety of experimental counters.

First, let's look at the essential heroes for defensive setups. 'Palanus, Ragna, and Clemis' are undisputed staples for any defensive build. Throwing in a well-nurtured 'Gellidus' is the cherry on top. However, given the nature of the old Seven Knights, they are notoriously difficult to obtain, so you must carefully evaluate their growth level before dragging them into live combat. Recommendations:The pivot point is Transcendence Stage 2. It is the minimum requirement for the 'Hero Potential' system. While these heroes can pull their weight even as a basic 'name card' copy, the top-tier meta demands a certain level of physical bulk. You only truly unlock their potential for real-world usage once you add the potential stats opened at 2-transcendence.

Once you have locked in your four defensive heroes, Sun Wukong remains the most reliable candidate for the final slot. While slightly lower on the charts, he sits at 11th place with a 18.7% pick rate. Right behind him at 12th is his interchangeable counterpart, Elysia, with both heroes recording nearly identical usage statistics.

And then there is Guan Yu, who made an unexpected appearance last week and now sits at 13th. Like Sun Wukong and Elysia, he is fighting for that final roster spot. He is a strategic choice for those looking to gain an early-game advantage against offensive team compositions.Finally, lurking outside the main rankings is Spike. With a 5% pick rate, he is the 'new meta' for defensive teams. When paired with Gellidus’s ice, it creates what players call a 'Freeze Defense' or 'CC Defense' composition.

The 'Guan Yu Defensive Team' enters the competitive ranks

The formation trends mirror the dynamics we observed earlier. The 'Balance Formation' represents the offensive squads, while the 'Attack Formation' speaks for the defensive ones. As the marginal changes in the charts show, there hasn't been a significant shift in the ratio between the two. Aside from the occasional basic formation choice, the Balance Formation remains the gold standard.

As for pets, 'Yu', who reigned supreme for quite some time, has finally dropped to second place. The spot has been snatched up by 'Lu', which synergizes perfectly with defensive heroes, capturing the top spot with a steady 40% pick rate. You can trace the reason for this shift by looking at the fluctuations of 'Zeo'.

Originally, Yu was the pet of choice for offensive teams to keep defensive healing in check. However, as the frequency of defensive team matchups waned, the proportion of mirror matches increased. In other words, with so many 'Offense vs. Offense' mirror matches, players have switched to Zeo to squeeze out more initial firepower. It is a classic bit of improvisation from offensive team rankers looking to boost their win rates.

Since the launch of Awakened Dellons, the offensive meta has remained consistent, making the 'Best Pick' of the week effectively identical to the last. So, we have prepared a 'Focus Pick' instead: the Guan Yu defensive team, which has set the Arena ablaze. While its overall pick rate isn't massive, it has been utilized by top-tier rankers in actual matches. In Server 4, player 'Blueberry' climbed to 2nd place with 7,030 points using this very setup. It proved its worth by stubbornly holding the line against offensive teams that lack broad-area piercing skills.

High-level Arena defense team pick rate analysis

※ High-level Arena defense team pick rates were tallied as of June 23, 3:00 PM.
※ Statistics are compiled from the defense teams of the top 100 ranked players.
※ Information may differ slightly from current defense team configurations.

With only two days left until the final tally, the top 100 defensive team pick rates in the High-level Arena show offensive and defensive squads locked in a similar ratio. Magic teams managed a 5% point increase, but are struggling to hold on at a 15% final pick rate. If you combine these three team types, they account for 92% of the meta. The remaining 8%? That is exclusively reserved for 'Instant Death' teams—a sight only seen right before the season closes. Be careful, as many rankers have swapped to Instant Death teams to protect their rankings.

As a side note, within that small slice of Instant Death teams, there was one truly unique setup. Player 'Pi', sitting at 98th place at the time of the tally, was running a Rania Instant Death team. It seems designed specifically to halt rankers trying to climb with defensive teams. As defensive teams utilizing Gellidus and even Spike become trendy, they have brought in Rania, who possesses 'Freeze Immunity'. It is a glimpse into the charm of Instant Death teams: high efficiency with a small, specialized roster.

Real-time Arena Analysis Lab

Overall 1st place, Rudi Legion 'Geonbbang' adventurer's Magic team strategy

The second season of the Real-time Arena seems destined to be a one-man show by the top-ranked Geonbbang. As soon as the season opened, they surged to 1st place, and now they have created an insurmountable lead with a gap of over 10,000 points from 2nd place. Unlike before, they are now using all three teams evenly in the pick-and-ban phase, appearing much more relaxed. Their Magic team usage is particularly noteworthy; while it recorded poor results in the standard Arena, it has been a significant contributor to Geonbbang's points in the Real-time Arena.

Unlike the standard Arena pick rates, the popular Magic team heroes in the Real-time Arena are centered around firepower. Rather than heroes with survival skills like 'Omok', active picks capable of dealing direct damage are the trend. In that sense, 'Reginleif and Freyja' are essential inclusions, along with 'Milia and Skuld', who are used as a set to manage the opponent's cooldowns during the early combat phase.

The first skill always starts with Skuld’s 'Secret of the Constellations'. It applies a cooldown penalty to the opponent’s skills, and then the team pours out continuous, powerful area-of-effect attacks. If an ally gets hit with a debuff during this process, use Reginleif’s passive. It is the optimal strategy for dealing damage to the enemy while cleansing debuffs from your own team. Once the opponent falls into an 'immortal' state, finish them off using skills like 'Noble Golden Wind' and 'Strike of Resurgence'.