August Release Schedule
August will be our first full month in Grand Concert. We have two Champions Meetings coming up, a Story Event, and of course new Umas and Support Cards. August is a good month to save Carats, but there are also some useful Support Card reruns and some very strong Umas for niche roles.
August 5th - August 13th - Banners
New Uma: Yukino Bijin
Yukino Bijin
Yukino Bijin is probably best known for her welfare Support Card 
Yukino Bijin, featuring a 15% Race Bonus, and her Wit variant giving 
No Stopping Me!, a Skill she also has as an Uma. Her second gold Skill is Determined Descent.
A natural 
Pace Chaser, she is able to run both Mile and Medium distances. Her B Dirt aptitude also makes her suitable for both Dirt and Turf races.
Snow Bright, Snow Flight is a Speed Skill that activates 300m from the finish line, requiring her to be within five horse lengths of the leader and in 4th place or better.
Her Secret Events provide some decent Skill Hints for Pace Chaser and Dirt races. Her stat bonuses are 10% 
Speed and 20% Guts, which is a bit underwhelming.
Support Card Re-Runs: Smart Falcon Power SSR & Silence Suzuka Speed SSR
Smart Falcon
Smart Falcon is a strong Support Card for building 
Front Runner Legacies, famously giving 
Groundwork in the first event of her event chain. She has 
Center Stage, the gold version of 
Prudent Positioning, which is highly recommended in combination with Dodging Danger. Fans of Copano Rickey might want her for the five green Skill Hints she has in her kit.
Silence Suzuka
Silence Suzuka has a lot of Front Runner Skill Hints and her gold Skill is Unrestrained, which gives acceleration in the Final Corner. However, considering that this is not useful in the upcoming Champions Meetings in Grand Concert, it can be difficult to justify pulling this Support Card.
These Cards are quite weak from a Stat gain perspective, so are difficult to fit into an ace deck. Still, Smart Falcon is a good choice for building Groundwork Legacies, and having at least LB0 will unlock your borrow slot for other Skill Card options.
August 5th - August 14th - Champions Meeting Virgo Cup
Our first Champions Meeting in Grand Concert brings us to the Oi racecourse for a Medium distance Dirt race. The Medium distance means Oguri Cap (Christmas) will be a favorite once more, while the Dirt aptitude limits the pool of available Umas, without significant effort. Please check out our guide for this CM here. Good luck, Trainers!
August 12th - August 21st - Banners
New Uma: Seeking the Pearl
Seeking the Pearl
Seeking the Pearl is a specialist for Sprint and Mile distances. Speed and Wit stat bonuses complement an already strong Skill set. She has a gold Skill for each distance: 
Shocking Flash is the gold version of 
Sprint Straightaways ○ and Big-Sisterly for Mile. Although her aptitudes cover both Pace Chaser and 
Late Surger, Head-On makes Pace Chaser the stronger choice thanks to its powerful acceleration.
Her Unique Skill, I'm Possible!, is similar to Triumphant Pulse, activating 200m before the finish line. The effect becomes even stronger when she is running in 2nd place and closing in on the leader. This is a Skill that can be useful in Legacies going forward.
Seeking the Pearl is not a must-pull Uma, but she performs very well in shorter races, whether in Champions Meetings or Team Trials. She is worth considering if your roster needs a strong Sprint or Mile ace. Grand Concert will feature both a Sprint and a Mile Champions Meeting later on.
Daiichi Ruby Power SSR & K.S. Miracle Guts SR
With this banner, two new Umas enter the global line-up, albeit only as Support Cards for now.
Daiichi Ruby
Daiichi Ruby is a strong Power card with a lot of Debuff Skill Hints. She also has a Skill Point Bonus with a high Specialty Priority. Her gold Skill is Flash Forward, an acceleration Skill for Sprint and Mile distances that requires you to have an Overtake Target while being in 5th place or worse in the late race.
Since her other Skill Hints are for Late Surgers, she supplements this style very well. Unfortunately, Grand Concert does not have much room for Power cards, so we recommend borrowing her instead.
K.S. Miracle
K.S. Miracle provides Pace Chaser and Sprint distance Skill Hints. Her Unique Perk also includes a Skill Point Bonus. As SR cards go, she is not bad for the style and distance, but you will probably have better choices.
August 12th - August 19rd - Mission Campaign Autumn G1 Celebration
The Mission Campaign Autumn G1 Celebration, Part 1 is all about the Sprinters Stakes. Here are the missions:
| Mission | Reward |
|---|---|
| Complete a career playthrough having cleared all Career Goals 1 time | 20,000 Monies |
| Complete a career playthrough having cleared all Career Goals 2 times | 20,000 Monies |
| Win the Keeneland Cup in Career | 1 Alarm Clock |
| Win the Centaur Stakes in Career | 1 Alarm Clock |
| Win the Sprinters Stakes in Career | 10,000 Support Points |
| Complete all missions | 150 Carats |
August 13th - August 19th - Legend Races: Sprinter Stakes
Get your Sprint aces ready, because this time we take on Nishino Flower and Hishi Akebono. Challenge them for Star Pieces and the usual rewards, including Carats and SR and SSR Uncap Shards.
August 18th - August 30th - Story Event: "Days Flying By"
This is the Halloween Story Event. Expect the usual rewards from this. The featured characters this time are Agnes Digital, Meisho Doto, Mejiro Palmer, Daitaku Helios and Shinko Windy.
Shinko Windy
The free card this time around is Shinko Windy. She is somewhat decent as a Statstick and comes with Dirt Skills. Her gold Skill is curious: 
Maestro of the Mud is a green Skill that increases Speed and Power exclusively on Dirt tracks with Soft or Heavy Ground Conditions. In all current Champions Meetings this only ever applies to one Champions Meeting, the Second Aquarius Cup, which will be the final one of Grand Concert.
This Skill could be inherted on a Legacy for that Champions Meeting, such as for Copano Rickey.
August 18th - August 30th - Banners
New Umas: Agnes Digital (Halloween) & Meisho Doto (Halloween)
Agnes Digital (Halloween)
This Costume for Agnes Digital is more niche than her OG version. Her Unique Skill, THE MOE AAAA Thanks for My Life, activates mid-race on a corner, which can sometimes give her Speed Carryover. Like her OG version, she spreads her stat bonus across four Stats, this time on everything but 
Wit. For her gold Skills, she has It's On! and Can't Keep Me Down, a Dirt mid-race Target Speed Skill, activating from the back half.
Meisho Doto (Halloween)
Meisho Doto, on the other hand, has a solid Skill set as a Pace Chaser. She comes with Neck and Neck, a good acceleration Skill, and 
Swinging Maestro, a very reliable gold recovery. Her Unique Skill, Spooky, Scary, Happy, is a Final Straight Target Speed Skill that also slightly debuffs the Speed of other Umas.
New Support Cards: Mejiro Palmer Stamina SSR & Daitaku Helios Speed SSR
Mejiro Palmer
Mejiro Palmer is relevant for Front Runners. She has Taking the Lead, which up until now was only available on Mihono Bourbon and on Twin Turbo.
It is difficult, however, to justify pulling for her, as Mihono Bourbon is coming in a few months, and the PVP events in Grand Concert generally cannot justify adding a Stamina Support Card, except possibly the second Scorpio Cup (Kyoto 2200m) and the second Sagittarius Cup (Nakayama 2500m). Mihono Bourbon is also a Scenario-Link character. It is better to borrow this Support Card for those two Champions Meetings.
Daitaku Helios
Daitaku Helios has several Mile Skills and Perfect Spot!, the gold version of Slipstream. Unfortunately, she is weak compared to other Speed SSR cards. There are simply better options than her.
August 25th - September 2nd - Banners
New Uma: Aston Machan
Aston Machan is a Sprint Specialist Front Runner. She comes with Taking the Lead and In High Spirits. The first is essential for Front Runners, helping them reach their early-race Target Speed faster, and the other is a great mid-race Skill in Sprint. She also has Groundwork in her kit.
Her Unique Skill, Silent Letter, triggers 400m before the finish line, which is late race for Sprints. She needs to be in 1st or 2nd and must be an Overtake Target. When her Unique Skill activates, she gets both an Acceleration and a Target Speed increase, helping her to stay ahead. Given that Sprint races that are 1200m long have a late-race that begins at the 400m remaining mark, Silent Letter activates precisely when Acceleration Skills are needed.
Evolved Skills are not yet in the game but are expected to arrive later this year, and they will bolster her solid Skills even further. While Champions Meetings in Sprint distance are rare, she is very strong in Team Trials. Aston Machan fills a very specific niche, but within that niche she is one of the best Umas.
Support Card Re-Runs: Maruzensky Speed SSR & Fine Motion Wit SSR
On paper this is a very good banner. Both cards are meta in Grand Concert.
Maruzensky
Maruzensky came out just last month and features a bonus to Training Effectiveness depending on your Facility Level. This makes her strong in every deck. On top of that she has a great Front Runner gold Skill in Top Runner.
Maruzensky has a decently long shelf-life if you play Front Runners. She will stay relevant for that style for quite a while due to her hints and Top Runner, possibly as far into the future as Smart Falcon, which is past the 3.5th Anniversary.
Fine Motion
Fine Motion has been on top of the Wit Supports since launch. She has a chance to give you Speed Star and has both 
Fall Runner ○ and Right-Handed ○ in her kit.
However, Fine Motion will be dethroned by Mejiro Ramonu, which is the Scenario Banner for Grand Masters. This is the next Scenario to be added, coming in Late November or Early December with the 2nd Anniversary Celebration. Given how short Fine Motion's remaining lifespan is at this point in time, it is difficult to justify pulling for her unless you already have high Limit Break are finishing off an MLB.
August 25th - September 3rd - Champions Meeting Libra Cup
We are going to the Hanshin racecourse for a Mile race. This is the Mile Championship G1, which was held at Hanshin instead of Kyoto that year. Expect to see strong Pace Chasers like Taiki Shuttle and Nishino Flower going toe-to-toe with End Closer Oguri Cap (Christmas). Fittingly, both Taiki Shuttle and Oguri Cap won the real-life Mile Championship, with Taiki Shuttle claiming the title twice.
Closing Thoughts
This month we settle into Grand Concert. This scenario in general does not have new meta-defining Support Cards, so you might consider saving up your Carats. The next scenario, Grand Masters, will significantly raise the power level of Support Cards. The same goes for Umas: it is nice to have a specific niche role covered, but especially if you are a free-to-play player or low spender, I recommend exercising patience. This is usually much more rewarding in the long run, when you can keep up with Support Cards.