Andvari, The Dwarven Oracle: Four Arms, Zero Tolerance for Minions

Overview

Andvari is a 5-star Legendary Ice hero hailing from the subterranean depths of the Nidavellir family, introduced during the Untold Tales 2 event back in late 2024. As a Sorcerer, she fits squarely into a support and control role, designed to wipe the board clean of parasitic entities like Minions and Fiends while bolstering her team's defenses.

In a game where summoners often dominate the battlefield, Andvari acts as a reset button for unit-based strategies. While she doesn't deal massive direct damage with her special skill, her utility belt is packed with tools to keep her team alive and charging faster. She is essentially the housekeeper of your team, cleaning up the mess your enemies leave behind.

Hero Art & Visuals

Andvari’s design is a striking departure from the typical dwarven aesthetic. She features four arms, which is two more than the average dwarf (and three more than the average pirate), allowing her to cast multiple runes simultaneously. The artwork is vibrant, with glowing blue and purple magical effects that contrast beautifully against her dark attire. She looks like she is in the middle of a complex ritual, or perhaps just trying to juggle her schedule. The visual cues of "oracle" and "mystic" are strong here, moving away from the axe-wielding stereotypes of her kin.

General Info

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Hero Stats

At a base power of 1169, Andvari sits in a respectable position for a hero released a year ago. However, when compared to the bleeding edge of the meta in late 2025 (like the recently released Devyani with 1233 power), Andvari is starting to show her age slightly.

Her stat distribution leans heavily towards survivability. With 2243 base Health, she is a massive meat shield. Her Defense of 1176 is solid, ensuring she can take a beating while her passive Molten Core charges up. Her Attack stat of 1145 is decent, though largely irrelevant for her primary Special Skill, which does not deal direct damage to heroes. It does, however, fuel the damage of her Molten Core passive. In the current landscape, her stats are "high average"—still very usable in top-tier wars, but no longer at the absolute peak of the power curve.

Special Skill: Saga of Deliverance

The Saga of Deliverance is a multi-faceted support skill that addresses several meta threats simultaneously.

Minion and Fiend Control: The headline feature is the unconditional destruction of all Minions from enemies and all Fiends from allies. This isn't a "damage to minions" skill; it is a straight removal. Against standard minions, this is a hard counter. Against Mega Minions and Mega Fiends, she deals damage to them instead of instantly destroying them, which keeps her balanced against the newer, tankier summoned units.

Firestorm Ward: She grants a Firestorm Ward to all allies. This mechanic provides a cap on incoming Special Skill damage (reducing it by up to 1300) and offers additional mitigation against Nature enemies. This makes her surprisingly durable against the very element designed to kill her.

Mana Acceleration: Perhaps the most underrated part of her kit is the +40% Mana Generation buff for 4 turns. This is a massive increase. For context, this can allow Slow heroes to charge at Average speeds and Average heroes to become practically Fast. It turns her from a reactive counter-hero into a proactive engine for your entire team.

By the Numbers

Mana Speed Analysis:

Base Speed: Average (10 tiles).
With +40% Buff: Once she fires, if you can maintain the buff, her own recharge rate skyrockets.
Passive Boost: She gains 5% mana every time she resists a Burn ailment. Against burn-heavy teams, this can shave a tile off her initial charge.

Support Calculation:

Damage Mitigation: The Firestorm Ward reduces Special Skill damage by a flat amount (up to 1300). If an enemy sniper would hit for 1500, they might only hit for 200 (subject to the floor mechanics of the ward). This is exceptional against hard-hitting snipers.
Mana Gen: +40% is significantly higher than the standard +24% often seen on older heroes.

Passive Damage Output:

Molten Core: At full charge, the passive deals approximately 391 Burn damage over 3 turns (roughly 130 per turn) plus defense down. While not a nuker, this chip damage adds up, especially since it triggers after she clears minions, ensuring the burn lands on the hero's health pool.

Family Bonus, Passives, Aether Power & Unique Abilities

Family Bonus

The Nidavellir family bonus typically involves the Molten Core mechanic, which is central to her identity. It rewards her for taking damage, turning her into a ticking time bomb of utility and passive damage.

Passives

Empowered Resist Burn: This is an incredible sustain tool. Not only does she ignore burn damage (a very common DoT), but she heals 450 boosted health and gains mana for it. Bringing a burn hero like Emilio or various barbarians against her is actively detrimental.

Molten Core: This charges when she takes damage. When she casts her special, it unleashes Corrosive Burn. This adds a layer of offense to her purely supportive special skill. The defense down component (-10% per turn) is particularly nasty for setting up kills with your other heroes.

Aether Power

Defense Up: A simple, practical power. It increases her already high defense at the start of the battle, ensuring she survives long enough to cast her Saga of Deliverance. While not as flashy as "Revive" or "Rage," it suits her role as a tanky support anchor.

Legacy & Modern Relevance

Historical Context: When Andvari was first released, the community reception was mixed. Many players felt she was underwhelming because she lacked direct healing or direct damage on her special skill. However, buffs to her mana generation (from 30% to 40%) and the inclusion of Mega Minion/Fiend interactions solidified her place as a specialized counter.

Power Creep Analysis: A year later, her stat line holds up reasonably well, primarily due to her massive health pool. The introduction of more Mega Minions and Mega Fiends into the game has actually increased her value. While pure stats have crept up (with heroes now pushing 1250+ power), utility heroes like Andvari age better than pure damage dealers. A minion wipe is a minion wipe, regardless of how much health the minion has.

Modern Viability Verdict: Andvari remains a High Viability hero in specific niches. She is not a "put in every team" hero, but she is a premier counter-pick in Wars and Tournaments. In the current meta, where summoners are still prevalent, having a hero who can clean the board and accelerate your team is invaluable. She has transitioned from a "maybe" to a solid "tool in the box" for veteran players.

Emblem Path Analysis

As a Sorcerer, Andvari has a talent that can delay enemy mana generation, which is excellent for a defensive or support role.

The Survivor (Recommended)

Path: Defense > Health > Attack
Pros: Maximizes her survivability. She needs to stay alive to cast her buffs and clear minions. The longer she lives, the more "Firestorm Wards" she can deploy.
Cons: Her passive "Molten Core" burn damage will be slightly lower, as it scales with attack.

The Battle Mage

Path: Attack > Defense > Health
Pros: Increases the damage of the Molten Core burn and tile damage.
Cons: Makes her significantly squishier. Given she has no direct heal (only damage mitigation), this is risky.

Final Recommendation

For most players, the Survivor path (Defense/Health) is recommended. Her primary job is utility; if she dies before casting, she is useless. Let your snipers deal the damage; let Andvari stay alive to enable them.

Strengths

Complete Board Cleaner: Removes all standard minions and fiends instantly. No damage check required.
Mana Engine: +40% Mana Generation is a top-tier buff that accelerates the whole team.
Specific Durability: The Firestorm Ward and extra resistance against Nature make her very tanky against her counters.
Burn Punisher: Turns enemy burn ailments into health and mana for herself.

Weaknesses

No Direct Healing: While she prevents damage via the Ward, she cannot recover lost health for her team (unlike some other supports).
Passive Reliance: Her offensive output relies entirely on her passive Molten Core charging up, which requires her to take damage.
Average Speed: Without the mana buff active, she can feel a bit slow against Very Fast rush teams if she doesn't get good tiles.

Best Game Modes

Minion/Undead Horde Wars: This is her playground. She trivializes the mechanic of these wars.
Rush Attack Tournaments: With her mana generation buff active, your team becomes uncontrollably fast.
PvP Offense: Specifically against minion-heavy teams (e.g., Waterpipe, Miriam & Midnight, or W3K heroes).
Map Stages: Great for stages with bosses that spam minions.

Advanced Strategy & Team Compositions

Sample Team Ideas

1. The "Cleanse and Charge" Offense

Composition: Healer (e.g., Hathor) - Andvari - Defense Down - Sniper - Sniper
Why: Andvari clears the defensive minions that absorb damage, allowing your Defense Down hero and Snipers to hit the enemy heroes directly. Her mana buff helps the snipers reload quickly for a second volley.

2. The Anti-Nature Defense

Composition: Andvari (Flank) - Red Tank - Andvari (Flank)
Why: While rare to have two, Andvari flanks protect a Red tank from Blue stackers, but her specific buff against Nature attackers means if the enemy tries to bring Green against your Blue flanks, they do significantly reduced damage.

Counters & Anti-Synergies

Counters: Dispellers (e.g., Sabina, dispelling the Ward and Mana buff), Silencers (preventing her cast).
Anti-Synergy: Other Minion Removers. You don't need two heroes doing the same job.
Synergy: Slow Heroes. Pair her with heavy hitters like Khufu or Alfrike. Once Andvari fires, the +40% mana gen helps these slow monsters charge in just a few matches.

Advice for New Players

If you pulled Andvari early, congratulations. She is a bit complex, but very useful. Focus on keeping her alive. She won't win the battle by herself with big damage numbers, but she makes your 4-star healers and snipers work much better. Don't worry about her passive damage mechanics too much early on; just focus on firing her special to protect your team.

Advice for Veterans

Andvari is a luxury tool for your war chest. She is the answer to specific, annoying defenses. Is she worth a second Limit Break (Alpha Aethers)? Only if you use her on Defense. On offense, she usually survives well enough with just one limit break. Her Aether power (Defense Up) is good, but not game-changing enough to prioritize over a top-tier damage dealer.

Community Corner: Hot Takes & History

When Andvari launched, the forums were buzzing with skepticism. Users noted, "Is Andvari worth Summoning For? Not really," in early polls, citing her lack of direct impact compared to other featured heroes. One user famously lamented, "I quickly 2xlb with 25 emblems and 100% regret it," feeling she didn't do enough. However, others saw the potential: "Minion killers are super handy, and that 40% mana boost—oh boyyy." The addition of the "Mega Minion" damage text before Mega Minions were widely common led to some confusion, with players joking about "Mega Friends."

Final Thoughts

Andvari is the definition of a "force multiplier." On her own, she is a sturdy wall that waves four arms around. But paired with the right team, she removes obstacles (minions/fiends), protects your glass cannons, and speeds up your win condition. She isn't the flashy hero that gets the kill, she's the one who holds the enemy down so your other heroes can land the punch.

Verdict: A solid, utilitarian B+ to A- hero depending on the enemy team composition. Keep her for minion wars; you'll thank the Norns you did.