Katsushika Hokusai (Saber)

“I'll draw an' paint an' cut the opponents down at random! ...Hm? What is it, Father? "This is a dark past you'll blotch out with ink"...?”

The Saber incarnation of Hokusai is an Oui whose desire to be a storybook warrior rivals her desire to be an artist. Innocent and curious, if a bit immature, she is a single-target Arts damage dealer boasting high NP damage as well as good affinity towards critical damage.

Being a welfare, Hokusai’s greatest asset is her essentially guaranteed NP5, which gives her a major edge against most competitors. The NP’s own NP Damage buff further builds upon this strong offensive base, but she is able to take it one step further with the Arts Performance buff from Pseudonym, Dragon-Crested Octopus B. Aside from her powerful NP, Hokusai is also equipped with various critical-oriented tools, ranging from Instant Critical Stars, Star Absorption Up and even Critical Damage Up, allowing her to be a quite reliable critical damage dealer with a well-supported team. Rounding up her kit are the NP Charge from Divine Power (Ink) C and Guts from Father-Daughter Connection B, the latter of which gives her some extra leeway in terms of survivability.

Hokusai does require some external support to function properly, as her self-buffed NP refund won’t be nearly enough for an NP Spam, and despite her various critical buffs, Hokusai herself cannot produce enough stars in a consistent manner. She is also reliant on supports in terms of survivability and long-term sustain.

Nevertheless, these weaknesses don’t take away from Hokusai’s sheer damage potential, and they can be quite easily fixed by using the right supports. All in all, Hokusai can be considered a very solid Servant even at release, and with the release of a certain Arts support, she might well be one of the most powerful free damage dealer options in the entire game.

High ST NP Damage

With all but guaranteed NP5 and two offensive buffs to provide additional damage boost, Hokusai’s NP Damage is impressive to say the least, and she can go even further with the help of proper supports. With 8 hits to its name, A Tour of Waterfalls in Various Provinces is able to provide a good amount of refund, especially when external Arts Performance buffs are involved.

Critical Damage Affinity

With a Critical Damage buff as well as a Star Absorption buff, Hokusai is well-placed to convert available critical stars into damage. While Hokusai herself doesn’t produce a lot of stars from her Command Cards, she is able to use Divine Power (Ink)’s instant critical stars to provide an extra boost when necessary.

Reliant on External Support

While Hokusai has the makings of a powerful damage dealer, both her NP refund as well as her star generation capabilities are rather limited on their own, which severely hinders her from reaching her full damage dealing potential. On the flip side, having a well-supported party will significantly boost her performance, especially if they can cover both aspects of Hokusai’s playstyle.

Lacks Long-Term Sustain

Although Father-Daughter Connection’s Guts provides some leeway in terms of survivability, Hokusai’s lack of any sort of healing/defense buff/hard defensive skill means that she can have some survivability issues in longer fights. Fortunately, as an Arts Servant, she is generally able to find suitable defensive supports easily, making this problem a minor one in most practical cases.

In general, it’s recommended to max Divine Power (Ink), while Pseudonym, Dragon-Crested Octopus should be level 6 at the very least. Meanwhile, Father-Daughter Connection can be left at a lower level if resources are an issue.

• Divine Power (Ink) charges Hokusai’s NP gauge while also providing a decent amount of critical stars instantly. Both effects scale with skill level, and the cooldown reductions gained at levels 6 and 10 help improve Hokusai’s overall consistency. At level 10, this skill allows an instant NP with a Kaleidoscope. If such a capability is desired, this skill should be leveled first; otherwise, level it second after Pseudonym, Dragon-Crested Octopus.
• The Star Absorption Up provided by Father-Daughter Connection lasts for 3 turns, and is what makes Hokusai a viable critical damage dealer. It also provides a one-time Guts, allowing Hokusai to survive through enemy NPs. However, as the Absorption Up effect is arguably strong enough at base level and the increased HP from Guts is rather insignificant, the reduced cooldown is left as the primary benefit of maxing this skill. As such, it has the lowest leveling priority of Hokusai’s three skills.
• Pseudonym, Dragon-Crested Octopus B acts as Hokusai’s primary damage boosting skill, providing her with a 3-turn Arts Performance buff. The second part of the skill’s effect increases Hokusai’s Critical Damage for 3 turns whenever she deals a critical hit, though this should generally be viewed as more of a bonus. Nevertheless, the Arts Performance buff remains indispensable to increase her NP damage as well as refund, and this skill should be leveled second (or even first, if the 20% NP Charge threshold of Divine Power (Ink) is deemed unnecessary).

As with many damage dealers, Starting NP Gauge Craft Essences are Hokusai’s best friends. In regards to secondary offensive effects, Arts Performance Up, NP Damage Up and Attack Up are recommended, as well as Critical Damage Up to a lesser extent.

•  Dive to Blue / Holy Night Supper / Golden Sumo: Boulder Tournament / Painting Summer / The Classic Three Great Heroes: These hybrid Starting NP CEs are excellent choices for most stages, as the mix of Starting NP and offensive effects make for flexible options. 
• Kaleidoscope / The Imaginary Element (MLB): These CEs allow Hokusai to unleash a very early NP (potentially instant in the case of Kaleidoscope, with level 10 on her first skill). They are great picks for when she is used in the backline, or otherwise when a very early NP timing is desired.
• The Black Grail: This CE builds upon Hokusai’s powerful NP even further, increasing her damage output to astronomical options. As it lacks Starting NP and deals damage every turn, however, it should be used only with a properly supported team.
• Formal Craft / Royal Icing / Mark on a Smiling Face / Meeting of the Heirs / Emerald Float / Kaleid Sapphire / Projection: These CEs are more of filler options, but can be used if other Starting NP Gauge CEs are unavailable, especially if Hokusai is put in the frontlines. Nevertheless, without external support, it will take some time until Hokusai charges her NP, which can pose a problem in faster-paced fights.