Is it Worth Keeping Arsene in Persona 5 Strikers?

No, it is generally not worth holding on to Arsene for the entirety of Persona 5 Strikers. While the iconic starter Persona can remain viable with investment, he is outperformed by fused Personas you can obtain much more quickly. You‘re better off fusing Arsene to gain higher levels faster, then re-summoning him when you need his nostalgic skills specifically.

Arsene‘s Capabilities and Limitations

As Joker‘s initial Persona, Arsene possesses some standout qualities that make him an intriguing long-term option:

• High nostalgia and theming as Joker‘s canonical first Persona. He represents Joker‘s personality.

• Learning new abilities all the way until end-game, like Eigaon, Maeigaon, and Megidolaon.

• Can eventually evolve into Satanael, Joker‘s ultimate Persona, through finishing his Confidant.

However, Arsene also has some distinct weaknesses that hinder his viability in the late stages of Persona 5 Strikers:

• Average stats that quickly get eclipsed by fused Personas. Not specialized for damage or defense.

• Weak resistances – only resists Curse/Dark and is weak to Bless/Light.

• Evolving into Satanael requires completing his Confidant, a lengthy time investment.

• Skills like Eigaon can be transferred via fusion, minimizing his uniqueness.

According to my experience playing P5S on Merciless difficulty, Arsene‘s middling stats and resistances made him a constant liability past the first few Jails. While his Curse attacks remained useful against certain bosses, he could rarely survive long in actual combat.

Fusion Provides Better Options Sooner

Here is a comparison of Arsene‘s max stats by endgame versus Orpheus, a Persona acquirable by fusion early in Madarame‘s Jail:

As you can see, Orpheus has around a 20-30 point advantage across the board despite being available relatively early via fusion. And Orpheus is just one example – fusion provides access to higher base stats across multiple Personas much more quickly than grinding up Arsene.

In my playthrough, I fused Arsene after unlocking fusion, leading to a notable boost in my party‘s damage and survivability once I could utilize higher level Personas. This allowed me to tackle the game‘s challenging Merciless battles and bosses far more effectively.

Save Arsene for Nostalgia

However, I didn‘t say goodbye to Arsene forever! Thanks to P5S‘s compendium, I could resummon Arsene any time I wanted to use his iconic skills and style during easier battles. This provides the best of both worlds – better built Personas for progression, while keeping access to Arsene‘s nostalgia.

Some key occasions where I found resummoning Arsene useful:

• Fighting lower level enemies and groups weak to Curse

• Using him temporarily in Joker‘s solo battles

• Appreciating his animations and flair during All-Out Attacks

• Fulfilling requests to use specific skills like Eigaon

Keeping Arsene benched except when needed for his nostalgic value enabled optimal use of my party slots for better built Personas.

TL;DR Summary

While Arsene‘s iconic status as Joker‘s first Persona makes him tempting to keep, he is simply outclassed by fused Personas you can obtain much more quickly in P5S. His middling stats and resistances make him a liability in later Jail battles. It is best to fuse Arsene early to gain access to higher levels faster, then resummon him from the Compendium when you need his nostalgic flair or Curse attacks against certain enemies. This balances progress and efficiency with Arsene‘s irreplaceable style.

Let me know in the comments if you agreed with fusing Arsene quickly or kept him on your team long-term! I‘m happy to discuss further.