Iron Fire is a variation of Fire Rain. This set up replaces Ame Onna with Tesso. The reason is simple. Tesso’s [Money Justice] is an AOE debuff, its speed is faster than that of Ame Onna, and that its normal attack and passive can also debuffs. This is a perfect match for Hououga.
Set Up
Team composition is very much the same as Fire Rain by replacing Ame Onna with Tesso. Speed sequence goes: Kamaitachi > Tesso > Hououga > Zashiki > DPS, with Hiromasa as the Onmyoji.
This is similar to Fire Rain for that both debuffs (Tesso’s and Ame Onna’s) cost 2 Orbs and both debuffs last 2 turns.
Soul Recommendations:
Kamaitachi – The recommended choice is to equip three 2-set Souls focusing on Speed. However, he can use a 4-set Fortune Cat to synergize with his passive so that there is a second chance to generate Orbs. No matter what, every Soul needs to have speed in either Primary or Secondary attributes.
Tesso – 4-set of Jizo Statue fits him well. Use Speed for Position 2; Position 4 and 6 should be HP. The goal is to increase survivability as he has weak defense.
Hououga – 4-set of Jizo Statue, Fortune Cat, or Mirror Maiden depending on team set up. Position 4 needs to be Effect HIT and position 6 needs to be crit %. The key is to maximize survivability as well as inflicting status effect. This is the same as Fire Rain set up.
Zashiki – 4-set of Fire Spirit to ensure there this enough Orbs in the beginning. For her, all Souls can be HP to maximize survivability.
Ubume (or other DPS) – 4-set Seductress for her to take advantage of the extra proportional damage. This is pretty standard for DPS. If you are lucky enough to have Ibaraki Doji, give him a 4-set of Shadow to take advantage of his spillover damage; Position 6 for him should be Crit Damage.
Hiromasa – He should be equipped with [Panther Eye] and [Exorcism Arrow] to increase damage output.
Advantage
- Tesso’s base speed is 115, 12 points higher than Ame Onna. This would be easier to equip Soul.
- Tesso can AOE attack and AOE buff 20%
- Tesso’s passive can lower enemy’s damage, thereby increasing the survivability of own team.
Disadvantage
- Tesso has low survivability itself, so if the enemy gets to act first, it is a very dangerous situation for the team.
- Unlike Ame Onna, Tesso lacks the ability to slow enemies down.
Conclusion
Clearly, Ame Onna is more stable than Tesso, but is slower. With a good ST or AOE DPS, Tesso is arguably better in finishing the fight faster. However, its weak defense is a major risk.