History Characters / ArknightsDefenders

* {{Handgun}}: Most Sentinels so far seem to have a preference for handguns, which they wield in tandem with their shields like riot police officers.

* AchillesHeel: With exceptions of those that deal Arts damage (Asbestos, Dur-Nar, Nian, etc...), enemies with a lot of HP and high DEF are this to most Defenders, due to their mediocre (Physical) damage output. Without Arts support from other operators, most Defenders will be out of a means to HoldTheLine when mobbed by small groups of enemies, who will eventually overcome their block and leak past them.

* BlindedByTheLight: Blitz' Flash Shield comes as part of his kit. It also runs on charges as it did in ''Siege'' when Blitz is equipped with his S1, though once depleted, they can only be replenished by retreating and redeploying him.

* KickThemWhileTheyAreDown: Or rather, stunned. His '''Shielded Shooting''' talent increases the amount of damage he can inflict on stunned enemies, and the easiest way to trigger that would be for him to use his shield to do so.

* PassThePopcorn: He ''eats popcorn'' when watching the Battle Records.

'''Factions:''' [[Characters/ArknightsRhodesIsland Rhodes Island]] | [[Characters/ArknightsReunionMovement The Reunion Movement]] | [[Characters/ArknightsDublinn Dublinn]] | [[Characters/ArknightsMilitaryCommissionOfKazdel The Military Commission of Kazdel]] | [[Characters/ArknightsOthers Miscellaneous factions & characters]] | [[Characters/ArknightsNations Nation States]] ([[Characters/ArknightsNationsAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsNationsNToZ N-Z]]) | [[Characters/ArknightsEnemyIndex Enemy Units Index]]]]-]]]

'''Operators:''' [[Characters/ArknightsVanguards Vanguards]] ([[Characters/ArknightsVanguardsAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsVanguardsNToZ N-Z]]) | [[Characters/ArknightsSnipers Snipers]] ([[Characters/ArknightsSnipersAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsSnipersNToZ N-Z]]) | [[Characters/ArknightsGuards Guards]] ([[Characters/ArknightsGuardsAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsGuardsNToZ N-Z]]) | '''Defenders''' ([[Characters/ArknightsDefendersAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsDefendersNToZ N-Z]]) | [[Characters/ArknightsCasters Casters]] ([[Characters/ArknightsCastersAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsCastersNToZ N-Z]]) | [[Characters/ArknightsMedics Medics]] ([[Characters/ArknightsMedicsAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsMedicsNToZ N-Z]]) | [[Characters/ArknightsSupporters Supporters]] ([[Characters/ArknightsSupportersAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsSupportersNToZ N-Z]]) | [[Characters/ArknightsSpecialists Specialists]] ([[Characters/ArknightsSpecialistsAToM A-M]] | [[Characters/ArknightsSpecialistsNToZ N-Z]]) \\

->'''Race:''' Unknown

* AchillesHeel: They have a blindspot in the two rows directly in front of them in which they are unable to target enemies with their ranged attacks.

'''Duelist''' Defenders have very high defense and attack, but are limited to 1 block, making them mainly suited to blocking and eliminating single, high threat targets that Dreadnought Guards and Executioner Specialists won't fare well against, such as elite enemies or bosses. Another feature of Duelist Defenders is that they only generate SP while they are actively blocking an enemy, which also extends to SP batteries.

* AchillesHeel: Duelist Defenders are dependent on blocking enemies in order for them to generate SP for their skills. However, their high ATK and block count of 1 actually works ''against'' them since they would be killing enemies too quickly before they could get meaningful amounts of SP, and they cannot block multiple enemies to circumvent this while they focus on attacking a single enemy. A Duelist Defender that cannot activate their skills when they need it is likely prone to being overwhelmed by many weak to mid-level threats, or easily killed by high-level threats. Their SP generation can also be gimped if their block count gets reduced to 0, either due to hazards/enemy gimmicks, or challenge mode conditions that reduce block count.

!!'''Protector''' [[labelnote: also known as]] Normal Defender [[/labelnote]]

!!'''Arts Protector''' [[labelnote: also known as]] Arts Defender [[/labelnote]]

!!'''Guardian''' [[labelnote: also known as]] Healing Defender [[/labelnote]]

!!'''Juggernaut''' [[labelnote: also known as]] Enmity Defender, Zombie Defender, Lone Wolf Defender [[/labelnote]]

!!'''Fortress''' [[labelnote: also known as]] Backline Defender [[/labelnote]]

!!'''Sentinel''' [[labelnote: also known as]] Longshot Defender, which was their initial name[[/labelnote]]

!!'''Protector'''

!!'''Arts Protector'''

!!'''Guardian'''

!!'''Juggernaut'''

!!'''Fortress'''

* LongRangeFighter: Despite being classified as Defenders, they are most optimally placed in the backline, boasting maximum range comparable to Snipers and area-on-effect damage on their ranged attack ''only''.

!!'''Sentinel'''

* MeatShield: With their high HP and DEF and the ability to body block, most Defenders are deployed to be this, usually to protect a squishy Guard or DP-generating Vanguard behind them. Alongside Snipers, Medics, and some Casters, the strength of your Defenders is the most accurate measurement of whether you can surmount a current BeefGate or not. If all of your Defenders are KO'd, expect the enemy to overwhelm you in seconds.
* StoneWall: Stat-wise, Defenders have mountains of hit points and defense with correspondingly low range and attack power. Their ATK growth rate is generally signifcantly lower than most operator classes, although they compensate with their high HP and DEF growth rates. Many of them also have skills that boost their excellent survivability even further.

* CunningLinguist: His proficiency at multiple languages makes him Rainbow's go-to negotiator with the locals.
* KickThemWhileTheyAreDown: Or rather, stunned. His Shielded Shooting Talent increases the amount of damage he can inflict on stunned enemies, and the easiest way to trigger that would be for him to use his shield to do so.
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: Subverted; he's out of combat duty for most of the story because his shield ends up failing him when fighting a metal crab, until Liskarm gives his shield a temporary fix in "Originium Dust" and Rhodes Island gives him a more Terra-standard-issued shield. The playable unit plays this straight afterward.

* TemporaryOnlineContent: Like his fellow ''Siege'' operators, Blitz can only be recruited during the ''Originium Dust'' event.

'''Protector''' Defenders are ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. These guys have the greatest health by comparison to everyone else in their class, and can take the most punishment. Most of the time, their kit doesn't extend far beyond sitting there and be a MeatShield, as their damage output is usually poor, though there are exceptions, most notably Hoshiguma, who has high ATK and skills that facilitate her use as an offensive tank, and Nian, who's a multiclass.

!!!'''Default DP cost range (without potential upgrades):''' 14 - 23 DP

* [-'''5★ Operators of this archetype:''' Aurora-]

* [-'''5★ Operators of this archetype:''' Liskarm, Blitz-]

* [-'''5★ Operators of this archetype:''' Ashlock-]

* LifeDrain: Not to the extent of Musha Guards, but Juggernaut Defenders will have some tool in their kit to generate HP.

!!!'''Default DP cost range (without potential upgrades): TBA'''
'''Sentinel''' defenders (formerly classified as Protector Defenders before ''An Obscure Wanderer'') wield ranged weapons that allow them to attack up to two tiles ahead of themselves as well as shoot down air units. They have increased offensive power compared to Protectors, but lower defenses as a rseult.

* DifficultButAwesome: Their unusual range and usage as ranged ground units despite being 3-block ground units can make proper positioning difficult, but they are capable of outputting staggering amounts of damage from safety while being much more durable than actual Snipers.

'''Fortress''' defenders sacrifice some defense for more offense, and are able to use [=AoE=] physical attacks at long range as long as they aren't blocking enemies themselves.

* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: The vast majority of them wield shields (or [[ImprobableWeaponUser shield-like objects]]), justifying their high defenses. Some of them are even issued shields ''and nothing else''. (A number of them [[ShieldBash have very little]] [[WeaponOfChoice problem with this arrangement]].)

* [-'''6★ Operators of this archetype:''' Mudrock-]

!!!'''Default DP cost range (without potential upgrades):''' 22[[note]]No 4-star operator released yet to have this lower bound cost[[/note]] - 28[[note]]No 6-star operator released yet to have this upper bound cost[[/note]] DP

->'''Tags:''' DPS, Defense,
->'''Skills:''' Flash Shield, Defense Breacher
->'''Talents:''' Shield Gunplay, Bunkered Defense

* MagicKnight: Somewhat similarly to Bladeweaver Guards, they're the only Defender archetype that deals Arts damage by default, but only if their skills are running, as Bladeweaver Guards can do so without a skill running.

->'''Subclass:''' Normal Defender

!!!'''Default DP cost range (without potential upgrades):'''TBA'''

* [-'''5★ Operators of this archetype:''' Bison, Blitz, Croissant, Heavyrain, Liskarm-]