- Default
- Attack
- Special
- Injured




Hawkeye - Desert Guardian |
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Hero Stats
Stat Variations
HP | ATK | SPD | DEF | RES | |
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Low | 20 | 8 | 4 | 5 | 5 |
Middle | 21 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
High | 22 | 10 | 6 | 7 | 7 |
HP | ATK | SPD | DEF | RES | |
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Low | 42 | 30 | 19 | 24 | 27 |
Middle | 45 | 33 | 22 | 28 | 30 |
High | 48 | 36 | 25 | 31 | 33 |
IV Sets
Key stats worth increasing through nature if possible. | |
Complementary stats that matter, but not to the point of picking them over key stats for nature increase. | |
Relatively worthless stat that can safely be decreased through nature. |
HP | ATK | SPD | DEF | RES |
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Assets
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+ATK: Hawkeye is by no means weak, but he can struggle to KO sturdy foes if he runs Sol or Noontime.
Neutral
-
HP: Hawkeye has plenty of HP, but as a tank, he would much rather keep it as high as possible.
-
DEF: At base 28, Hawkeye’s Defense isn’t the greatest, but he relies upon it to block damage from physical attackers. A flaw in Defense also gives a -4 reduction.
-
RES: Hawkeye is one of the few infantry to be blessed with good Defense and Resistance. He excels at tanking mages, so Resistance should not be taken as a flaw.
Flaws
- -SPD: Hawkeye’s statline is solid in all areas except Speed. There is not too much he can do about this, instead relying on his HP, Defense, and Resistance to mitigate damage. A flaw in Speed is the least impactful overall for Hawkeye.
Skill Sets
Endless Sunset (Sustainer Tank)
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Guardian's Axe (+Eff) | A | Distant Counter |
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Reposition Alternate: Swap |
B | Null Follow-Up 3 Alternate: Guard 3 |
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Aether Alternate: Noontime |
C | Pulse Smoke 3 Alternate: Atk Smoke 3 |
IVs | S | Quick Riposte 3 Alternate: Fierce Stance 3 |
Preferred Asset/Flaw: +ATK / -SPD
-
No surprises here, Hawkeye wants to maximise his Attack to boost his damage output. Speed is his least valuable stat, so it’s the best candidate for a flaw.
Weapon: Guardian’s Axe (+Eff)
-
The Special acceleration greatly helps Hawkeye charge Specials, while the refine gives him Lull Atk/Def 3. Hawkeye is one of the few units who can ignore buffs while using a B slot skill.
Assist: Reposition / Swap
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Hawkeye is likely to be your team’s frontliner, so Reposition and Swap are recommended.
-
Reposition is better if you’re running Hawkeye alongside a ranged attacker, as he can throw offensive units behind him.
-
Swap can allow Hawkeye to move an extra space, and is a strong general choice.
Special: Aether / Noontime / Moonbow
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Aether is the general Special of choice, as Hawkeye sometimes needs the extra damage over healing.
-
Noontime is better if Hawkeye has significant buffs, or an ally such as Halloween Hector is used to lower enemy HP. It provides more healing (less per activation, but more activations), but no additional damage.
-
If Hawkeye has a healer ally, Moonbow becomes incredibly effective. This is recommended in modes where Hawkeye can have reliable external healing support.
Passive A: Distant Counter
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Hawkeye needs to be able to counterattack at a distance, in order to handle the myriad of mages and archers that he exists to tank.
Passive B: Null Follow Up / Null C-Disrupt / Guard / Quick Riposte
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Null Follow-Up is the general pick, allowing Hawkeye to ignore guaranteed follow-up attacks. This neutralizes skills like Bold Fighter, Wary Fighter, Axebreaker, and Quick Riposte.
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Null C-Disrupt is specifically for countering Firesweep, Windsweep and Dazzling Staff users.
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Guard is a surprisingly good budget option, and is the best against Special Fighter users.
-
Quick Riposte is again a great budget option which frees up Hawkeye’s Seal slot.
Passive C: Pulse Smoke / Atk Smoke
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Pulse Smoke is incredible in Aether Raid Offense, allowing Hawkeye to disable mages who are built to initiate with powerful Specials instantly charged.
-
Atk Smoke is a budget choice, but is still effective. However, it can have poor synergy with Chill Skills, which are common, effective choices.
Seal: Quick Riposte / Fierce Stance / Atk/Def Bond
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Quick Riposte is required on Hawkeye to guarantee he gets follow-up attacks, since his Speed is far to slow to do so naturally.
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Fierce Stance is an option if Quick Riposte is chosen in the B slot. It gives Hawkeye a lot of upfront power when defending, and is great for casual modes.
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Atk/Def Bond is another option if Quick Riposte is chosen in the B slot. It’s great, but comes with the condition of having one unit directly adjacent, which may be difficult to achieve in Aether Raids.
A Song of Ice and Fire (Spiral Nuker)
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Guardian's Axe (+Eff) | A | Distant Counter |
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Reposition Alternate: Swap |
B | Special Spiral 3 |
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Glacies | C | Pulse Smoke 3 Alternate: Atk Smoke 3 |
IVs | S | Quick Riposte 3 Alternate: Fierce Stance 3 |
Preferred Asset/Flaw: +ATK / -SPD
-
No surprises here, Hawkeye wants to maximise his Attack to boost his damage output. Speed is his least valuable stat, so it’s the best candidate for a flaw.
Weapon: Guardian’s Axe (+Eff)
-
The Special acceleration greatly helps Hawkeye charge Specials, while the refine gives him Lull Atk/Def 3. Since this build is all about charging Specials, it’s the best choice for him.
Assist: Reposition / Swap
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Hawkeye is likely to be your team’s frontliner, so Reposition and Swap are recommended.
-
Reposition is better if you’re running Hawkeye alongside a ranged attacker, as he can throw offensive units behind him.
-
Swap can allow Hawkeye to move an extra space, and is a strong general choice.
Special: Glacies
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Glacies is the best bang for your buck, dealing an incredible amount of damage off Hawkeye’s Resistance.
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Sol is a decent alternative, allowing this build to function more similarly to a sustain tank. However, it’s a bit slower to start due to the nature of Special Spiral.
Passive A: Distant Counter
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Hawkeye needs to be able to counterattack at a distance, in order to handle the myriad of mages and archers that he exists to tank.
Passive B: Special Spiral
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Special Spiral is a very important skill on this set, allowing Hawkeye to significantly reduce the charge time of his Specials.
Passive C: Pulse Smoke / Atk Smoke
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Pulse Smoke is incredible in Aether Raid Offense, allowing Hawkeye to disable mages who are built to initiate with powerful Specials instantly charged.
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Atk Smoke is a budget choice, but is still effective. However, it can have poor synergy with Chill Skills, which are common, effective choices.
Seal: Quick Riposte / Fierce Stance / Chill Def
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Quick Riposte isn’t as important on this set, but it’s a great backup if Glacies fails to KO the opponent.
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Fierce Stance powers up his Glacies, making it a very strong option for Hawkeye.
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Chill Def is an alternative to Fierce Stance, being less reliable but potentially useful for Hawkeye’s allies. It also works when Hawkeye initiates combat, strengthening his weak offense.
Introduction
Hawkeye: Desert Guardian is an axe infantry, and was one of the units available from day one. Although he spends his days watching over Sophia, the two share more than friendship: They have similar statlines, and are some of the few infantry who can boast decent Defense and Resistance.
Compared to most other axe users, Hawkeye is an oddity. His base 30 Resistance stands out amongst his peers, who are often lumped with low Resistance or have very lopsided defenses. His proficiency as a mixed tank make him one of the better axe infantry for Aether Raids Offense, although he still trails Brave Ike in that regard.
Hawkeye also wields a personal weapon, the Guardian Axe. It provides him the effects of a Slaying Axe and Lull Atk/Def 3 combined. Notably, this allows Hawkeye to ignore enemy buffs while running a B slot skill. This gives Hawkeye some unique skill combos, and helps him maintain relevance amongst units with superior stats.
Strengths
Stellar mixed defenses.
Hawkeye’s original claim to fame (before he got his great personal weapon) was his combination of 28 base Defense and 30 base Resistance. Combined with his excellent base HP of 45, he is very difficult to OHKO, and can take at least one hit from almost all units.
Has a solid niche as a tank thanks to his Guardian’s Axe.
Hawkeye can effectively use Lull Atk/Def at the same time as another B slot skill, giving him some great niche choices. He can choose between Null Follow-up and Null C-Disrupt, or opt for more offense choices such as Special Spiral, which synergises well with the -1 Special cooldown from Guardian’s Axe. Being able to ignore Bold and Wary Fighter whilst stripping foes of their buffs is one great niche that Guardian’s Axe provides.
Weaknesses
Low Speed
Hawkeye really only has one weakness, his low base Speed. Unfortunately, it is enough to cripple him in some important areas and keeps him out of the highest tiers. Hawkeye can ignore guaranteed follow-ups with Null Follow-Up, most foes are fast enough to get follow-ups naturally on him.
It also makes him weak when attacking, and he can’t run Galeforce like Amelia or Picnic Felicia. Hawkeye isn’t strong enough to reliably get OHKO’s without an offensive Special, but does rely on healing Specials to keep himself topped up.
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Poleaxe+ (+Eff) | A | Distant Counter |
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Reposition | B | Null Follow-Up 3 |
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Sol | C | Atk Smoke 3 |
S | Distant Def 3 |
This should say "Null C Disrupt" instead of "Null Follow-Up".
A lot of variation is possible, from IVs to refines, but at the center of this build is "Null C Disrupt", "Distant Counter", "Poleaxe+", and "Attack Smoke 3".
This is actually less expensive than it seems due to the update allowing anyone to use Nasela for both DC and Null C-Disrupt. So only one "exclusive 5-star" is needed for this build.
Why is this build so great? Primarily for AR.
Enemy team has a bunch of Razzle Dazzle Cavalry? Sacae's Blessing? FireSweep? Powerful Blue Mages? Outstanding Dancers that are also Blue Mages? Pah... Hawkeye the HorseCleaver has come, and he's about to tank and OHKO the entire opposing team.
Hawkeye is great for his mixed bulk, which allows him to withstand threats like Eir and B!Lyn in the same breath as he withstands Veronica, Reinhardt, L!Azura, and usually, most reds as well (Aversa). This build was created to counter AR defenses built on luring you into the range of several units who prevent counter attacks.
Must have strong mixed bulk, must be infantry, must be green (due to Reinhardt, Ophelia, L!Azura, L!Lucina).
PoleAxe+'s refine effect allows you to ignore cavalry buffs, which I have found to be more useful than an extra +4 Def or Res.
Aether usually charges too slow, so while it helps Hawkeye smash a beefier unit into oblivion, Sol will heal him faster. I find that keeping him topped up often will help him survive a battle with Aversa.
+Atk may seem like a strange choice for a unit built on Mixed Bulk, however, the extra attack helps him just squeak out a OHKO against a glass cannon who would otherwise double him. It certainly helps against an all-flier team.
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Sack o' Gifts+ (+Res) | A | Distant Counter |
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Reposition | B | Quick Riposte 3 |
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Aether | C | Infantry Pulse 3 |
S | Distant Def 3 |
My big boi Hawkeye can still be useful! Even if he doesn't have a prf, which is a crime, he can still tank a lot of things!
The statspread I put out is him when he is at +10 merge, so if you want to do this exact build but with no merges, do -4 to every stat and then put in a bane to whatever stat he has (Preferrably SPD.)
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Slaying Axe+ (+Def) | A | Steady Breath |
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Swap | B | Quick Riposte 3 |
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Bonfire | C | Infantry Pulse 3 |
S | Close Def 3 |
You want a close counter tank? Well here’s one for Hawkeye. It’s sad no one uses him when he’s such a fantastic unit. His speed may slow him down but QR makes it up. This build is mostly a enemy phase build so don’t bother trying to build him like this if you’re looking for a player phase Hawkeye.
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Brave Axe+ | A | Death Blow 3 |
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Reposition | B | Shield Pulse 3 |
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Sacred Cowl | C | Panic Ploy 3 |
S | Atk Smoke 3 |
? Hawkeye - Blastoise, the Turtle General - (Rafale wielder)
"Giving up is easy. No matter how hard it is, giving up is easy! As long as I have life, all I can do is fight with all my might."
IVs : +Atk / -Spd
W: Brave Axe+ (aka Rafale)
Sp: Sacred Cowl
A: Death Blow 3
B: Shield Pulse 3
C: Panic Ploy 3
S: Atk Smoke 3
Build analysis and explanations (edited in comments):
https://fireemblem.gamepress.gg/q-a/theorycraft-bravart-hawkeye-turtle-general
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Brave Axe+ | A | Fury 3 |
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Harsh Command | B | Quick Riposte 2 |
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Bonfire | C | Threaten Atk 3 |
S | Deflect Magic 3 |
Does a fairly good job at taking out Blues, but also has enough Def & Res to at least soak a hit from magic and physical attacks (which is where the "Deflects" take place). Fury just adds to his bulk, but doesn't necessarily cripple his offense all that much.
QR is to make him have a decent Enemy Phase to counteract his Brave-reliant Player Phase. Syncs well with Fury & Bonfire
Weapon Skills
Weapons | SP | Rng. | Mt. |
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![]() Inheritable by Axe users only.
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50 | 1 | 6 |
![]() Learns by default at 3 ★ Inheritable by Axe users only.
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100 | 1 | 8 |
![]() Learns by default at 4 ★ Unlocks at 3 ★ Inheritable by Axe users only.
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200 | 1 | 7 |
![]() Learns by default at 5 ★ Unlocks at 5 ★ Inheritable by Axe users only.
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300 | 1 | 11 |
![]() Unlocks at 5 ★ Non-Inheritable skill.
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400 | 1 | 16 |
Special Skills
Special Skills | SP | Turns |
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![]() Learns by default at 4 ★ Unlocks at 3 ★ Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
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150 | 4 |
![]() Unlocks at 4 ★ Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
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300 | 4 |
Passive Skills
Passive Skills | SP | Slot |
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![]() Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
Unlocks at 3 ★ |
50 | A |
![]() Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
Unlocks at 4 ★ |
100 | A |
![]() Non-inheritable by Staff-wielding units.
Unlocks at 5 ★ |
200 | A |
![]() Inheritable by all units.
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50 | C |
![]() Inheritable by all units.
Unlocks at 3 ★ |
100 | C |
![]() Inheritable by all units.
Unlocks at 4 ★ |
200 | C |
Other Info
Origin |
Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade
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