Compare realistic pairs
Put your current main and assistant beside the new pair at the stars and specialties you can afford. Keep troop type, equipment and battle conditions comparable. Separate attack, defense, HP and march size. Adding them into one large percentage does not predict a battle.
Write the rebuild budget
- Copies and ascension: count the fragments you own, a realistic route to more copies, and the remaining Blood of Ares cost shown in-game. One lucky summon is not a supply plan.
- Specialties and cultivation: record the Runestones, Gems, cultivation items, experience and Skill Books still needed. Price the development you will actually complete, not a finished build you hope to fund later.
- Equipment: list what you can move from the old main without disrupting another march. Reuse suitable gear; budget separately for replacements or different refinements. Do not charge the new general for a whole new set by default.
- Conditional buffs: include skins, covenants, dragons and other bonuses only at the levels you can use, in the role and battle conditions where they apply.
The portrait is included. Most of the performance is sold separately.
Check the assistant option first
An effective assistant may offer a cheaper route to improvement. Assistant specialties can contribute, but their ascension attributes and equipment stats do not apply in that role. Dragon requirements can still matter for activating skills. Check the active effects before investing.
Open Tavern → Recruit → Portraits → General Simulation. Select the intended main, assistant and Skill Books to check their combinations without changing your existing generals.
Confirm which skills remain active. The simulation checks skill combinations; it is not proof of a battle result. Verify useful performance with comparable reports when practical.
Give the change a job
- Switch when the attainable pair improves something you need: cleaner monster kills, useful march capacity, or better results against the opponents you actually face. Decide what improvement would justify the cost before spending.
- Keep the current pair when the gain is small, copies are uncertain, or the rebuild delays a more useful upgrade. Owning a newer general does not create a deadline.
Money and materials already spent are history. They are not a reason to keep an inferior setup forever. Compare the additional cost and benefit from today.
Official references: General Simulation, Assistant General rules, Ascension Fragments. These sources document the mechanics discussed. Use current in-game costs and active skill descriptions for your own build; this is a decision guide, not a current general ranking.
Keep the useful parts.
Test the new combination.
Let the portrait wait.