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Learns Black Magic Avo +20 upon completing budding talent.

This analysis was written by FlashingFire.

Sylvain is a well-rounded fighting unit with access to one of the best combat arts in the game in Swift Strikes.

In the early game, he starts out as one of the more useful frontliners thanks to his personal ability, decent base stats, and access to Tempest Lance. His HP and defense growths are above average, which means long-term he has the capability to survive combat even when being doubled by some tough enemies. Sylvain is notably the only student that can be recruited "for free" by simply playing as female Byleth. He synergizes especially well with Hilda and Leonie of the Golden Deer, thanks to their personal abilities. Recruiting Sylvain quickly also provides early access to the Lance of Ruin, which can open up options against strong enemies like the Death Knight.

Since his most notable offensive niche is using Swift Strikes, Strength +2 and Death Blow are the most desirable early class mastery skills, and his Axe boon means the necessary classes are a breeze to certify into. He also transitions easily into a Wyvern Rider afterwards, though a detour into Archer for Hit +20 is worth considering. From there, a Wyvern Lord progression is highly appealing for all of the obvious reasons. 8 squares of flying movement and Canto are terrific, and the favorable growth rates are icing on the sky-borne cake.

You could also opt for a less investment-heavy class progression and certify him as a Paladin, which Sylvain can comfortably fit in for the rest of the game. Lancefaire powers up Swift Strikes even further, the reduced speed growth is not terribly important when enemies will likely die before retaliating, and mobility is high between 8 move and Canto. You also have more flexibility in picking which battalions you want to equip, and the Movement +1 ability also becomes easier to unlock, if that's on your radar. If you're game for a riskier Sylvain build, you can master the Hero class for Defiant Strength, swap back into Paladin, equip a guard adjutant to make activating the ability easier, and supercharge the damage output of Swift Strikes. Regardless of his class, Sylvain also enjoys using Swift Strikes in conjunction with the Linked Attack boosts from Felix and Ingrid.

Beyond this role as a hit-and-run Swift Strikes fiend, Sylvain is competent but not necessarily amazing. He has a budding talent in Reason magic that grants Black Magic Avoid +20, but this is hard to utilize effectively. Reason Prowess does not grant as much avoid as most other weapon prowess abilities, there are few battalions that grant both magic attack and extra avoid, and magic classes do little to boost his speed. He gets access to Ragnarok and Physic, but his magic stat is nothing special. Still, he can at least be a mage that doesn't crumple to every physical attacker ever. Dark Knight is his best class for this purpose, since the extra mobility lets him get out of harm's way more often. And honestly, there's nothing preventing you from still unlocking Swift Strikes and doing your best Paladin impression with a bit of magic utility.

Sylvain can function comfortably in most physical classes thanks to his stat spread and lack of any skill banes beyond bows. Grappler and War Master are the primary remaining classes to talk about here, though there's not much to be said that can't be said for other male frontline units. They're strong builds, and Sylvain has the stats to make good use of both Fierce Iron Fist and Quick Riposte.

Contrary to his in-game personality, Sylvain as a unit provides a high degree of reliability in combat. His standout role is of course spamming one of the best combat arts in the game, but there's room to play outside that niche too.

Sylvain can build support with the following characters.

Sylvain will automatically be recruited if the player selects to teach the Blue Lions house.

Sylvain can be recruited once Byleth has achieved a stat of Cha 25 and Skill Rank C in Reason. These requirements can be lowered if Byleth builds support with Sylvain, as shown in the below table.

Sylvain can also be recruited by female Byleth starting from Chapter 2 regardless of her Reason rank and Charm stat.