Atten-shun, maggots! You have just been promoted to the United Kingdom of Edinburgh's (why is Scotland calling the shots now? Probably for the best) most elite division: the 32nd Armored Ranger Corps! You will be expected to accomplish perilous missions behind enemy lines; your chief weapons, tactical superiority and stealth. To that effect, you will need to fully understand the capabilities of every soldier in your unit. That includes the areas where they excel, those where they falter, and maybe any pop culture references the localization decided to toss in. Keep in mind that the United Kingdom of Edinburgh's armies do not have any manner of psychological screening process, because this is World War 2 and we need every able-bodied anime we can recruit, regardless of psychosis or severe personality defects. Now... dismissed!

In Part Two, it's all about close-range shocktroopers and long-range snipers. Add them together and you'll have full command of the battlefield, taking down any infantry unit in sight. We'll also meet Claude Wallace's two closest confidantes - Raz the shocktrooper and Kai the sniper - and some of the more deranged soldiers: you have to be a little crazy to want to pop heads from 200 yards or run right up and fry them with a flamethrower.

Shocktroopers

Advanced infantry, equipped with stronger armor and machine guns.

• Pros: Excellent units up close, between their machine gun fire and their flamethrowers (after the class promotion). Most effective means of clearing out almost anything, including tanks. Also resistant to damage, but only to a limit.
• Cons: Limited movement and range. While they can annihilate anyone walking into range with interception fire, they have to be looking almost directly at them.

Further strategies: Shocktroopers are your bullet sponges and juggernauts, in their prime when charging an enemy base or encampment and using their powerful short- and mid-range weapons to quickly kill almost anything, including tanks with the right assortment of gear and orders. Trouble is getting around that smaller movement range. During the mid-game and after when leaders are able to posse up, you should use a scout to get them to where the enemies are hunkering down and then have the shocktrooper clear them out. Before then, it's probably best to use a few turns moving any shocktroopers you have further ahead to support the scouts that already taking point, and leave them pointing towards the direction you expect enemies to come from: their interception fire is absolutely lethal.

The flamethrower that shocktroopers acquire after their class promotion is sufficient to kill any normal infantry unit, in cover or no. The exception are those able to evade it in time, which becomes the case with scouts in the late game (and enemy aces throughout the game). It has an extremely limited range though, so you need to get in close. However, one extra benefit is its wide arc: if there's two enemies guarding the same base, you can usually snag both with the same flame arc if you aim it right for a double-kill. Worth keeping the flamethrower upgraded and practicing with the arc to get the most out of it.

(NB: Asterisks (*) indicate a potential only acquired after completing that unit's Squad Story.)

Raz

"I'm invincible!"

Raz is the rough and tumble former gang leader whose territorial nature extends wide enough to include his entire country of Gallia. He and Claude find themselves in the same squad to the former's utter disgust, but Claude's growth as a leader eventually earns Raz's respect and loyalty and the two have been best buds ever since. Raz is repeatedly shown to be a good person deep down but the game finds some unfortunate ways to demonstrate his unrefined behavior, not least of which was grabbing fellow soldier Kai by the butt. Not something he should be sent to the anime Hague for, but not exactly the best way of endearing him to the audience either.

The Great White Grope is, like any of the other major character leader units, the best of his type. He feels modelled on Vyse of Valkyria Chronicles 1 in how his particular mix of positive potentials makes him deadly and invincible (as per his nickname) when charging into the fray like a maniac. In a sense, the game is using him to teach you early on how to effectively use shocktroopers. He remains an indomitable force throughout the game, though it's sometimes best to use other shocktroopers depending on the situation (though Raz should always be in your unit anyway because he's a leader, and leaders give you invaluable command points).

Tier: A.

Zaiga

"Raz, where'd you go?"

Zaiga is Raz's closest ally and a former member of the same gang. Zaiga definitely comes off as one of those toadies that stick around the biggest kid for protection, and his Squad Story is all about him learning to stand on his own feet (hence the independent "Growing Up"). I guess the chief issue with a character hitching his wagon onto a bigger personality is that it doesn't leave anywhere for Zaiga to really shine.

Since you always have Raz around, it wouldn't hurt to pair him up with his "BFF" here. Zaiga has two potentials that regularly proc with Raz around - a Raz-specific one for attacking, and a general Darcsen one for defense - and with that support he's one of the more reliable shocktroopers in the game. Highest evasion stat of any shocktrooper too, which can certainly help.

Tier: A.

Simon Bale

"Surprise, surprise dipshits!"

Bale comes off as one of those gleefully psychopathic shocktroopers who is in their element when charging an enemy guns blazing, but he'll suddenly turn meek and polite when a woman's nearby. It's a remarkable 180 to watch.

Despite appearances, Simon's best used cautiously. His first battle potential (those you earn from levelling up classes) gives him an accuracy boost when taking cover, and "Bully" is very effective at quickly removing scouts, snipers, engineers, and grenadiers. I generally tried not to rush too many times with Simon to avoid "Weak Constitution" from triggering and putting him in more danger, and the gynophobia of "Bad With Women" can make him a little awkward to use. Personally, I find he's best used for maps with a lot of hidden units and alternate paths, and he can be sent to cautiously sweep out an area on his lonesome.

Tier: B.

Scott Aldiss

"Defeat the enemy! Defeat the enemy?"

I think the developers were going for a sort of Forrest Gump type of soldier with Scott. He seems a bit developmentally challenged, so to speak, and takes every order he's given literally with some variant of "Yes, sir!". That said, this does make him very reliable at least.

"Camp Defender" makes Gomer Pyle excellent for taking an enemy base and keeping it, if it's deep in enemy territory and you can expect a lot of enemy troops to try to try to retake it on the next turn. "Gun Maintenance" pings a lot, and with that added accuracy it's rare that Scott is unable to finish a unit off and have "Fatal Uncertainty" trigger. Even if it does, though, you'll want to end his turn anyway so he can take another shot and finish his target off. As I said, a reliable guy.

Tier: B.

Stanley Barclay

"Hoofin' and goofin' ain't easy."

This southern yukster is always cracking wise, though I think an army soldier would have bluer jokes overall than the ones heard here. He's determined to make the battlefield a brighter place full of joviality and positive vibes, which... I mean, you're still melting people with flamethrowers, my dude. What are you supposed to say after that? "Boy, he sure looks hot under the collar!" "I just reunited that guy with his old flame!" "If you can't take the heat, stay out of the weaponized propane!" Wow, this is easier than I thought.

Goof Trooper makes for a pretty effective blitzer with "Positive", and "Motor Mouth" means he's a good choice for clearing out several enemies concentrated in a small area, since that would require multiple turns. "Chatterbox" is one of those negative potentials that's a lot less severe than it seems: close friends in his case only includes Ferrier, Jean, and Hanna, two of whom are lancers who should be off pursuing different targets (as in, tanks). If you can put up with his hyucking around, feel free to march him into the thick of things.

Tier: B.

Ryan Ford

"The battlefield is where I belong."

Ryan's really just Old Snake/Big Boss with some Bride of Frankenstein hair streaks. Not that I have any problem with that; it's not like Metal Gear Solid wasn't anime all along, after all. The game also gives Ryan a very Kojima-like weakness for sugary treats, which feels like the game's PG equivalent of Snake's fatal fondness for tobacco. I appreciate the David Hayter impression that VA Xander Mobus (maybe best known as the Smash Bros. announcer) gives Ryan, even if it's a little on the nose. At least he doesn't say "kept you waiting, huh?" at any point as far as I'm aware.

Gummi Snake is one of the best shocktroopers in the game, it should probably go without saying. As well as sporting the highest natural HP total of any shocktrooper - including Raz - "War-Torn Life" and "Independent" tend to proc a lot and "Legendary Mercenary" (once earned) usually means he's not without a grenade for long. He's fit for any role you give him, just be aware that "Sugar Withdrawal" can make distant targets tricky to both reach and one-shot in the same action.

Tier: A.

Vancey Fioré

"What? You don't wanna drink?"

Vancey's fighting off some PTSD by getting tore up all day every day, which seems like a very pragmatic way to deal with that condition. Despite being as drunk as a skunk, it doesn't affect her accuracy at all: she's the best shot in the entire Squad, at least nominally speaking (her accuracy is the second-highest of the shocktroopers, just after Raz). She's actually a secret badass elite, though her unit getting wiped out is what put her in a position where she would end up joining a ragtag band like Squad E because no-one else would accept her soused ass.

Kombat Ke$ha is definitely a fixer-upper with all those negative potentials. I'd even argue she was this game's Magikarp, though maybe that's not giving her enough credit. Before her Squad Story, she has perhaps the worst potential in the game - "Hammered", which just ends her turn immediately midway through moving - and yet her stats are impressive enough. If "Former Elite" procs, she's a death-dealing machine, and that's literally double if the battle potential "Double Attack" also activates on the same turn. Plus, she's just fun to have around, you know? Wheeeeee.

Tier: B.

Viola Bryce

"I'm not racist, but..."

Annime Coulter has a decent array of potentials and is very hard to kill, which is a positive for any shocktrooper, but the fact she's a big ol' racist makes her unpalatable. It is true to the reality of the 1940s that there were antisemites (or antiziganists) in both sides of the conflict but there's no reason to excuse it here. She doesn't even have the redemptive arc that turned VC1's Rosie around on Darcsens and made her more sympathetic. Shame, because Viola might've been more fun - She's angry all time! She becomes a pro-wrestler after the war's over! That violet lipstick is a bold choice! - without that dealbreaker personality flaw.

If you do intend to use her, though, she's perfect for marching into dangerous situations. If her HP drops far enough to activate "Berserker" you can use that extra movement to find somewhere safe to stash her. Equally, pair her up with any shocktrooper (besides Raz and Zaiga) for "Troop Solidarity"'s extra boost and she'll have no trouble taking out any base you send her to.

Tier: C.

Emmy Mistral

"Bullets aren't cheap, ya know."

Emmy's been scraping together cash for her momma's surgery for so long that her parsimony's become a major aspect of her personality. She's not one to suffer fools either, so she comes off as relatively brusque and unlikable. I dunno, I still sort of dig her sinister line delivery.

"Penny Pincher" is a real downer whenever it activates. A shocktrooper relies on their spray and pray to take out enemies in a single action, but only spending half the ammo is unlikely to kill most enemies especially if they're in cover. "Foul Play" tips the balance somewhat as it's hard not to one-shot someone with a shocktrooper from behind, and "Penny Pincher" won't affect flamethrowers at least. "Panicky"'s also a major bummer, so Emmy's only really good if you're running around surprising people from behind or from hiding places where she won't be shot at. Not too many situations where a shocktrooper's suited for that; surprise attacks are more in the realm of scouts, who can use that extra movement to take the long way around. Her one other good trait is that she also acquires Vancey's "Double Attack" battle potential at high levels, so maybe keep her in reserve until then.

Tier: C.

Fleuret Valois

"I'll take on ze lot of you!"

The very French Fleuret comes from a noble family of knights, and is another tip of the hat to just how many officers in the 19th century were still ready to charge into battle wielding a saber atop a mighty steed: the enemy's Gatling guns quickly puts an end to that era of chivalry, as the doomed Light Brigade proved in the Crimean War. Fleuret's story thread therefore concerns her getting over her aversion to machine guns before she becomes truly effective. It's too bad; I kinda like the idea of having one soldier that runs around with a sword, as impractical as that might be.

GI Joan of Arc's definitely a choice that requires you have a clear plan of action for how you intend to use your shocktroopers in the current map. If you intend to have them run directly towards an enemy encampment and flush them out with a flamethrower, she is absolutely perfect for that - "Close Combat" and "Daredevil" are fantastic potentials for blitzing. However, if it's a map with a lot of opportunities for sneak attacks - maybe a stealth mission, or poor visibility - "Code of Honor" means she's not going to comply with you, making her borderline useless. Fair to say that under the right conditions, she's one of the finest shocktroopers in the game.

Tier: B.

Ferrier Blancheur

"Uhh, which way do I go?"

One of the weirder soldiers in your squad, Ferrier must forever wear a mask for reasons she'd rather not say (you find out why in her Squad Story, though, and it's kind of heartbreaking). Now, maybe this is just me and my knight avatar talking, but there's something very appealing about Ferrier's character design.

The Girl in the Iron Mask is, as you might expect, a very durable soldier who has a few defense-based potentials worth keeping in mind. A lack of accuracy doesn't actually hurt shocktroopers too much either: a flamethrower never misses, and you aren't going to hit every time with a machine gun unless you're really close anyway. Better to take advantage of her "Endurance" defense boost when approaching enemies and get close enough so "Poor Visibility" never becomes an issue. Then just stick her in a hot zone and let enemies try to take her down - "Iron Mask" means it'll take more than a few attempts, and she'll be countering that aggro back in spades.

Tier: B.

Lily Ashley

"(giggles) What a shame..."

Lily was born under a bad sign and has since learned to embrace her jinxed existence with a certain amount of creepy gallows humor and sinister giggling. There's a fun Squad Story involving her and a lancer who has a perfect home life to return to as long as he survives the war, which sees Valkyria Chronicles 4 at its most self-aware.

Wednesday Addams embodies the concept of risk vs. reward: most of her good potentials only proc in bad situations. "Unfortunate", while a powerful boost, only applies if the enemies have interception fire with status effects attached - until the late-game, the only enemies that really have those are grenadiers and it's never a good plan to have any infantry (besides lancers) run through mortar fire. Likewise, "Misery Loves Company" requires she lose half her HP bar before she reaps the benefits. Still, if you find yourself facing a suicide mission, Lily's the type who would embrace it. She has some good battle potentials at least: "Undodgeable Shot", which Raz and Zaiga also have, is invaluable against certain bosses and enemy aces. Too bad she has the lowest HP of any shocktrooper though.

Tier: B.

Snipers

Long-range units that work best in an elevated position.

• Pros: Highly damaging shots, though can't always take out enemies in cover with a single headshot. Range is such that they can hit enemies half the map away.
• Cons: Limited movement, limited ammo, limited defenses. They acquire interception fire after a promotion, but the slow reload speed of sniper rifles and the AI targeting makes it less than wonderful.

Further strategies: Snipers really don't have a lot of value in Valkyria Profile 4, largely because they need ideal conditions to truly be effective. Their limited stocks and meager stats can make them a pain to keep alive and replete in ammo. That said, if the stars align right with certain maps, they're the most effective killers in the game. Usually, you're best just bringing along Kai for her leadership bonus and that's it, but if you can see a good nest or high cliff on the map on the mission overview screen feel free to bring in more. If you want to get the most out of a sniper, find them somewhere high up to nest and keep an engineer nearby.

However, there is an alternative use for snipers that the game doesn't advertise too well. You can acquire a special weapon around the mid-game onwards called the Gautt R, which does a huge amount of anti-armor damage instead of anti-personnel. Snipers have a much easier time hitting a tank's weak point or taking out a stationary turret from a distance, so a sniper with a Gautt R makes for a decent alternative to a less-accurate-at-range lancer or tank shell. Especially Leonhardt and Mabel, as they can both acquire potentials that boost anti-armor damage. Best applied on any map with a heavy presence of turrets to deal with - there's a lot towards the end of the game - as a single headshot with the Gautt takes care of them instantly.

Kai Schulen

"One shot's all I need."

Kai feels like Sega and Media.Vision finally acknowledging that Marina Wulfstan was the breakout star of Valkyria Chronicles 1. The moody and socially awkward Kai is what you'd have if you gave April Ludgate a high-powered rifle and let her go to town on everyone who annoyed her. Her romantic arc with childhood friend Raz and her incognito role as her brother (the real Kai Schulen) are some of the wilder narrative choices made by Valkyria Chronicles 4, but her quiet dignity and barbed tongue makes her a welcome presence in most cutscenes. No bullshit brooked with this one.

Probably goes without saying that Kai's the best sniper in the game, which is just as well because you'll always want her around for her leadership bonus anyway. Her potentials are perfectly suited for snipers: they don't move much, so "Empty Stomach" isn't a big deal, and "Independent" and "Deadeye" trigger a lot when you've left her alone somewhere high up to take care of any miscreants in range. She'll have no trouble clearing a battlefield of hostiles if you let her.

Tier: A.

Aladdin Ballard

"M'lady."

Aladdin's one of those joke characters that naturally repulses anyone who has to listen to him talk about how great he is and how he has to guard all the women in case they break a nail or something, but he's a little more sympathetic when you realize he lost his girlfriend in a battle prior to joining Squad E and is overcompensating with everyone else. Only slightly, though. Fortunately, since he's one of the weaker snipers, there's very little reason to ever have to use him.

Unfortunately, One Shot Man is very easy to kill while moving around enemy territory because of "Shiny Head" and "Self-Centered". For as much as it might make your skin crawl every time "Chivalrous" triggers, you're better off sticking him somewhere out the way with a female companion (preferably an engineer for restocking ammo) and let him take the needed defense boost.

Tier: D.

Norid Saarinen

"Fox in the henhouse!"

Easy-going Norid represents a nice touch of fidelity to the real World War 2 and the prolific status of Finnish snipers during the conflict. It feels especially valid with how much of Valkyria Chronicles 4 is set in snow-covered maps, often in forests with reduced visibility: the sort of environment that allowed the likes of Simo Häyhä to take over 500 lives during the Winter War between Finland and the USSR. Of course, during WW2 the Finnish fought alongside the Nazis (though only because they shared a common antagonist with the Soviets) rather than the Allies, but VC's not exactly a perfect re-enactment.

Norid's another character that works best on certain maps. Specifically, maps that are in natural settings like forests or fields (to avoid "Child of Nature") that provide somewhere for him to hide so you can make full use of "Practiced Hunter". He also benefits from having the second highest HP of any sniper and no negative potentials relating to spotting enemies or getting shot at, so if you needed to march a sniper through enemy terrain to reach a decent vantage point Norid's a good choice.

Tier: B.

Leonhardt Strauch

"Hail to the king, baby!"

One of the game's many cartoonishly boorish aristocrats, Leonhardt Strauch (which sounds suspiciously similar to "Leopold Stotch", a South Park character known by a different name) can be grating with his supercilious attitude. However, his backstory establishes that he's out to find his nanny and her son who were both deported back to their home country when the war started. He considers them his "real family" more than his cold and overbearing titled parents. Like another character, the lancer Gertrude, the game tosses you a standard rich jerk villain with some sympathetic qualities for those who dig a little deeper.

Prince Valiant has some annoying negative potentials, but stats-wise he's second only to Kai and has the unique battle potential of "Ammo Refill" which, needless to say, is amazing for snipers. To make the best use of him, keep him away from enemies and allies alike to avoid both "Royal Pain" and "Princely Pride". And get that Squad Story done, as "Gratitude" is quite the cocktail of boosts.

Tier: C.

Neige LePreton

"I... I'm getting nervous..."

Neige is a teenager who joined up with the Edinburgh army for... I can't even imagine what reasons. She seems to be startled by her own shadow, so how she became a sniper for an elite ranger corps is anyone's guess. Still, she's trying her best and learning to be more courageous. The question is really how the protagonist of an idol singing anime found herself in the middle of a war.

Poor old Snow Fright. "Stage Fright" really limits her potential as a sniper - she needs to be see a lot of enemies to be effective, and that means they often can see her back - and "Admires Fleuret" is such a random, incredibly specific potential to rely on to improve the sniper's terrible evasion stat. "Calming Ritual" is a bit more handy, as snipers should always be using cover when possible. She also has the lowest HP of any sniper, and thus of any unit in the game, which doesn't help her case either.

Tier: D.

Mabel Drake

"Make. Them. Bleed."

Mabel's from a military family and joins Squad E only after the player has completed three Squad Stories, which they should already be doing as soon as possible to unlock all these asterisked potentials. You'd think with all these extra hoops that Mabel would be something special, but she's really just a better-than-average sniper with few drawbacks. She's also the game's representation of that anime trope of an emotionless girl who is nonetheless drawn to cute things, shared with Azumanga Daioh's Sakaki among others. (I'd rather not get too deep into anime trope discussions on the internet if I can help it though. I might want to get married someday.)

Ms. Monotone's "Tranquil Fury" and "Soldier's Honor" makes her the best forward sniper, taking advantage of situations that would normally be deleterious to snipers and their relatively low evasion/HP. That said, her adorable "Soft Spot" also makes her effective when put in a camp somewhere to take shots from behind cover. Best case scenario is using her to clear out an enemy base with a lot of nearby targets and then leave her there to pick them off. "Debater" isn't much to worry about, as snipers have terrible evasion anyway and shouldn't be sprinting past turrets regardless.

Tier: B.

Current Tier Chart

Next time: We're finishing this series off with the lancers and grenadiers. Hope you like explosions!