Politis’s biggest strength comes from her second skill, which dispels buffs, inflicts heavy damage, pushes her forward, and can stun if she is equipped with the Abyssal Crown Artifact. You want to avoid this triggering at all costs because it will, more often than not, result in her following up with a devastating skill three. That being said, there are several counters to Politis that, while not shutting her down, will mitigate some of her overall damage.
Method 1: Conqueror Lilias
Conqueror Lilias is a great counter unit to Politis. Conqueror Lilias’ skill three buffs the entire party with Vigor, increasing their defensive capabilities. Yes, this is a non-attacking skill. And yes, it will trigger Politis’ passive. However, thanks to the Vigor buff, the damage your team receives will be considerably less. Furthermore, Conqueror Lilias gains an additional turn after using her skill three. This allows you to follow up with her skill two to provoke the now combat-ready Politis and potentially push her back. Conqueror Lilias is a great way to redirect a lot of Politis’ initial damage allowing the rest of your team to finish her off, hopefully. Note: If the enemy Politis is on Abyssal Crown, there is a possibility your Conqueror Lilias will be stunned after using her third skill. If this happens, there will be no way to stop Politis from unleashing a devastating skill three, so plan the rest of your draft accordingly.
Method 2: Angel of Light Angelica
Angel of Light Angelica is another great counter to Politis. Angel of Light Angelica’s passive dispels debuffs and grants skill nullifier to all allies after suffering an AOE attack. This party-wide skill nullifier makes for excellent protection against Politis’ follow-up skill three. Additionally, Angel of Light Angelica receives combat readiness whenever an ally is attacked. This means whenever Politis’ passive activates, Angel of Light Angelica will likely be taking the turn right after. This allows you to activate her skill three to potentially silence all enemies (meaning Politis cannot use her skill three). Finally, Angel of Light Angelica’s passive debuff cleanses and removes the threat of Abyssal Crown stuns ruining your carefully laid plans. The only problem with using Angel of Light Angelica to counter Politis is that a few things need to be accounted for. A popular strategy nowadays is for enemies to use a speedy AOE opener like Ran or Peira to proc Angel of Light Angelica’s passive, which is then instantly removed by the enemy Politis. That being said, Angel of Light Angelica is able to mitigate a lot of Politis’ kit.
Method 3: Tank the Damage / Full Ice Team
One of the less inventive strategies of countering Politis is to simply absorb her burst damage and cleanse any of the resulting debuffs. This can be done in numerous ways. The first would be to build your team incredibly tanky. Knights equipped with Aurius and Adamant Shield are great here as well as heroes that can grant Defense buff. Tanky heroes like this include Fallen Cecilia and Adventurer Ras, among others. You may also want to invest in a full 200% Effect Resistant cleanser such as Emilia or Maid Chloe to purge any unwanted stuns or blinds from the rest of your team. Additionally, Designer Lilibet has the added benefit of not only cleansing debuffs but gaining combat readiness whenever the team is affected by multiple debuffs. If you don’t have tanky units at your disposal, building an Ice-focused team will help mitigate some of Politis’ damage. Tip: Rem works exceptionally well against Politis – as after entering Demon Mode, she cannot be stunned or suffer an array of debuffs. Seaside Bellona is another great choice as Politis multiple AOE attacks will trigger multiple SSB counter attacks.
