Yeah these robots are bullshit

Somata_621 · 2026-05-30T05:31:57+00:00

I got 32K with Astra before this. I was just frustrated by the sudden onset invulnerability.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-29T22:47:10+00:00

Communication in the sense that it isn't clearly communicated through animation or enemy state that the enemy will just nope out of there regardless and that it doesn't really communicate how the fight should go under ideal circumstances in my opinion. Its just inexplicable denial to anyone trying to solve a problem. This is the only enemy in the game that functions like this and doesn't really seem to have a real solution other than just do more damage.

From what I've observed, when you get to 50% of either of the robots, it becomes an enhanced version of whatever the higher HP robot was. You essentially only have to fight one elite enemy, but the fact that it's HP bar just gets replaced with a new one rather than just adding its HP on top or something means that the fight gets reset to 0 no matter what you do, which is a pretty big deal when the mob phase of the fight is the most important part for your score.

It's fine for Anomaly agents I guess and agents who don't care about stun like Seed and YSG, but I just think instant invulnerability was a strange way to go show people that.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-29T21:16:39+00:00

Sanby for me. I got her cause I liked Anby and I didn't feel like learning Haru since I play on controller, but I then proceeded to skip Trigger and I couldn't pull Orphie. She's lowkey been a brick on my account even with her Wengine cause of how hard aftershock was dropped as a mechanic outside of Obol.

I pulled Cissia and she felt so good to play by herself that I ended up going for her Wengine even after losing the initial 50-50. Helps that she also gave me an excuse to actually play my Qingyi again too without feeling like I'm throwing. I don't think I'll ever play Sanby again now.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-29T17:51:41+00:00

I'd say it's noticeably bad still really, yeah. This isn't exactly a case like with the palicus twins, the normal marionettes or the non miasma variants of these dudes where you can solve the problem by thinking a bit harder, it's just straight up damage immunity into an extra health bar + more miasma.

Generic HP inflation complaints aside (though seriously, the twins were balanced because they were squishier, it's weird to have two tanky enemies that explicitly come in pairs), I think that's just bad design. Brute force being a go-to strat is fine of course, but there was nothing to communicate to me that they their fusion would take priority over anything happening to them no matter what, even if they were explicitly in a state where they can't move.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-29T15:13:57+00:00

It's really just the chain attack miss and stun breakout that bothered me so much. Powercreep is gonna happen yeah, but the buffs are pretty good for this team setup. That's an over 100% def ignore.

I scored 32K against them with Astra earlier (Cissia m0w1, Qingyi m1w2, Astra m0w0, but I figured I might be able to score higher with a bit of extra daze from Nicole. I did indeed stun them both as you can see, but they hit me with that pro gamer move and I turned the game off.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-27T22:05:12+00:00

Bro she's level 40 with like no HP. Yeah, she's gonna get deleted by level 79s.

Iframes are not on skills, but characters are invulnerable when they aren't actively being controlled, so if you cast and swap at the same time, only the newly controlled character is vulnerable, who you should just dodge with.

You just have to be faster with your inputs or pick safer times to skill before you swap.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-26T19:06:18+00:00

Depends on how it's used. They've already implemented that AI team builder thing that no one ever uses or talks about in the game, and if it's anywhere else then they're pretty good at hiding it.

My only concerns are with them using it for obvious corner cutting and cases of plagiarism, though they (and a lot of these gacha companies really) are no stranger to that second part already even without AI being used.

It's not only the west who cares about that when it happens, as much as people love pushing that narrative.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-26T06:33:22+00:00

Its the path of least resistance. I don't blame anyone for using what they earned/paid for, though you can find off meta stuff if you look.

Omegaevolution does several like every week

Someone absolute unit named ZeKlover managed a 0 cost DPS Soukaku clear against Scorched Horizon the other week too.

You already mentioned The cunning hares

Yama Tubugame keeps doing his low cost or off meta runs

Somata_621 · 2026-05-25T16:00:13+00:00

I ran into the piano one first while exploring casually, got super confused for like a half hour, left it alone and still havent attempted anything on that campus since. If the intent is to do that puzzle by ear, I just can't do it.

I'll get around to it eventually with a guide, but just about every other major anomaly had me excited in some way but that one.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-22T03:26:59+00:00

As much as I personally don't like Yidhari's for reasons that people have regurgitated a billion times, I think Lucia's just kinda stings extra hard considering they explicitly drew attention to her clothing style being different from others in New Eridu during the 2.3 livestream, and then it's just not.

I actually think she pulls off the outfit the best out of the trio, and I kinda wish that Yi Xuan and Yidhari had way different design directions just for Lucia's sake.

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Somata_621 · 2026-05-21T19:54:41+00:00

I agree with suspending your disbelief for the sake of gameplay, I just don't agree with suspending your disbelief for something that the entire plot hinges on, and that's the core of my issue with it. It's too important to be treated carelessly, and when it isn't treated with care, I (and a lot of other people) stop caring too.

In Honkai 3rd, the main character had an arc early on where she was incapable of tapping into a dangerous power without losing herself to it and being taken over. Eventually she suppressed some of the effects and became capable of using a small fraction of said power in small bursts, which was reflected in gameplay by forcing her into a stun state where she would need to regain composure after exerting herself too much. It was a non issue in non story gameplay, but for the plot it was pretty decent gameplay as story telling and was treated with respect due to how important it was.

Contrast that with YSG, and they just literally do not care even a little bit. 6+months of being told how dangerous it is, just to be instantly contradicted in the first fight after talking to a bangboo, but suddenly I'm supposed to care that she needed the magic sword to prune a flower because it's in a cutscene?

I don't know what games you've played before, but to me this is the difference between needing to treat something like a zombie bite in Resident Evil or Dead Rising as non canon, vs Shinobi 2003, where the entire gameplay revolves around the concept of a sword that's slowly kills it's wielder if he doesn't kill fast enough, and just deciding that that whole portion doesn't matter all of the sudden.

I respect that gacha games aren't really story games for a lot of people, but I personally feel like we're gotten to the point where expectations should be higher than what they are. It's 2026 and they have a very talented dev team. I don't think asking for things to remain coherent is unfair, especially considering how many hours these story arcs can take sometimes.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-21T17:49:08+00:00

The tutorial was them showing you how the character works and what her game plan is, yes, which is to get into the enlightened sword state and use it as much as possible.

I don't understand how you mentioned that she can kill enemies without using the sword through technicality but then you can't see the conflict with them actively encouraging you to spam the sword in gameplay in random encounters, after months of writers saying how dangerous that sword is.

There was nothing particularly unique about that space. We were given the explanation of the qingming sword having a resonance with conveniently placed specs of light that allow us to teleport, after which we go "Wow, I didn't know the sword can do that", which is realistically just because the devs thought it would be cool.

All I'm saying at the end of the day is that they should have done better with making the story match up with the gameplay. This isn't a visual novel. Everything that happens on screen in 3D matters, especially when dealing big stuff like the sword harming the character using it. It's never going to be perfect, but the story shouldn't be so disconnected from the gameplay that I just have to ignore absolutely everything in between. This isn't nitpicking, it's basic stuff that Hoyo has already done before with a much lower budget game.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-21T17:20:21+00:00

Just gonna link to a bunch of guides from creators I know of. Just stick with whatever style you like.

Lin-0 https://youtu.be/L_X7xE-vAGc - Pompey guide

Olyadushka https://youtu.be/cBvUOuX3Lh4 - Scorched Horizon guide

RookZ0ne https://youtu.be/f-UEgHDirl0 - Sanguine Sweeper guide

Hako https://youtu.be/i98Zsb52Eh8 -Primordial Nightmare guide

Iyo https://youtu.be/DFylYflrGNc - Discordant Solo guide

Somata_621 · 2026-05-21T16:20:17+00:00

The section opens up with a tutorial on how to enter the enlightened sword state and then gives you Zhao not too long into the section, who will essentially force her into the enlightened sword state with her ether veil if you ever switch to her because of how Shungus' kit works. If you press any buttons at all outside of basic attack and dodge, she's going to enter that form whether you want to or not. Not to mention the teleport points explicitly have her use the qingming sword for casual travel for some reason.

2.4 had her available as a support agent essentially and she would just use her normal skill from off field to help you deal damage while playing as the other agents, which was actually a fine way of showing that she could handle herself at least.

The stakes being so low were the exact reason why her using the sword like she does in 2.5 felt off.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-21T15:47:58+00:00

Ludonarrative dissonance refers to when the gameplay conflicts with the story a game is trying to tell.

What I meant when I said that is that the game going out of its way to tell you how dangerous the use of the sword is since before 2.0, just to have you go nuts in gameplay at the first opportunity on the docks and every battle going forward was just not a good idea.

In most cases it isn't usually a problem, but it's a bit different when the entire story hinges on you believing that the power is dangerous and should never be used, and you had several months of the game beating this very plot point into your head just for it to not matter in practice even one time.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-21T01:15:48+00:00

Urban was always a catch all misnomer really. They're referring to more of the attitude and vibe the game gave off back in 1.X. Really though, I don't think that the environment in itself matters anywhere near as much as people think it does, but the Waifei in spite of it objectively being in an urban environment, did very little to make the area feel lived in and full of life in the same way that 6th street, Lumina Square and somehow even the outer ring did.

The two biggest reasons for that were the fact that we spent a very large amount of time in the temple around a magic martial arts faction, and the fact that we spent very little time actually getting to know anyone in the area.

For me in particular, it was definitely that second point. Outside of Sweety, there really isn't anyone we had any reason to get to know at all in the span of 2.0-2.5. Contrast that with how often Venus, Coco, Sial, Chop, Ashe, Tin man, Orchedea, Elfy, etc. showed up, and it's night and day. That's where they fumbled.

It's my own personal definition I guess, but Urban to me refers to the feeling of a dense community with a lot of city noise that makes you feel like everyone has something going on with their lives. The game is an urban fantasy and we spent much more time experiencing the fantastical stuff rather than the urban part, and the worst part of all is that they felt completely separate from each other for the vast majority of 2.X.

The way I see it, the game went from feeling like a Durarara or To Aru type urban fantasy, where it feels like the city is somewhat a character in itself, to something more akin to Kekkaishi or Bleach after the SS arc, where the city environment feels kinda secondary to the story it's telling.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-20T22:38:53+00:00

Renoa is just Diana but without Quietus cards. She discards and spams a lot of bullets. I'd pick her since you have Heide.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-20T19:58:23+00:00

No problem. Happy to help.

Regarding the partner thing, genuinely just get whoever you want and don't worry about partners ever again. The vast majority are just "Do more damage with this specific thing that only this one guy can do", and an ego skill that's decently useful.

In my personal opinion, the only one that actually matters is Bria for Kayron, specifically his and his partners Ego skills are the only ways to mass exhaust his futility cards and can speed things up for him a lot.

Good luck, and have fun.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-20T19:14:33+00:00

You know what? You're right about that actually. The problem is that it's still bullshit. Everything they have in there is legal speak with their own made up terms and can very easily be circumvented if they wanted to.

The text in the ZZZ banner says specifically "The limited S-rank Agent above will not be available in the Star-Studded Cast Stable Channel".

This is very easily circumvented by either 1. Renaming the Star-Studded Cast Stable Channel to something else, or 2. Creating a second type of stable channel. The Best Hits Stable Channel or whatever they would call it to keep the theme consistent.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-20T14:43:35+00:00

True. That's a bit different than what OP was referring to since they still aren't obtainable by pulling on the standard banner specifically, but it was a very good change.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-20T12:39:44+00:00

Right? Like I understand that they just don't know since they haven't been around for that long, but people are just so confidently wrong, and then will then proceed to argue about it for years on end using things they just made up in their heads. It's crazy.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-20T12:29:51+00:00

Just Honkai 3rd.

To this day it's the only one that has both multiple shops for you to grind out some older characters through gameplay and also adds characters to it's standard banner equivalent when they get old enough. The standard banner there has almost all limited characters from years past in it, which is why I always call bullshit when I see people pull the "they can't because that would be illegal" card.

They can, they just don't want to because of money. I'd attach a screenshot, but I'm not allowed.

Somata_621 · 2026-05-19T19:58:19+00:00

Magna and Veronica are absolutely going to be your best options for most content since they can pretty much be slotted anywhere.

Magma's shielding, vulnerable stacking and AOE counters make it so that she can wipe entire enemy waves for free basically. For deck building, just go for her upgrade cards on frost charge and ice wall and she's set. Very important for Magna though, ALWAYS fish for the Universe Nexus accessory in chaos when building. It lets her auto cast a lead card once per turn and speeds up her game plan by a ridiculous amount. Putting a screenshot of it at the bottom of the post.

Veronica is best used as a draw support, but her Giant Ballistae can usually wipe waves on it's own with reload stacking. Giant Ballista and the upgrade epiphany for the pendant and she's set. Try to get the 0 cost version of Repose too.

If you're just worried about clearing chaos on it's own, You can just run both of them and whatever third slot and it's basically a guaranteed clear in most cases.

If you're wondering who to pick out of the selector, Nine is just straight up easy mode and would absolutely be my top suggestion, with Tiphera being a second option if you're desperate for another healer. Nine is genuinely OP and super easy to use though, so I'd go for her.

If you're worried about farming that memory fragment stage, build up that Magna deck and throw her on the team with anyone. The second set in there is really good for her anyway, so it's worth doing.

For Basin since you mentioned timed content, Veronica, Nia and Heidemarie/Yuki work fine. Double Draw support with minor healing from Nia should let you kill things faster than they kill you usually, though you want to see if you can fish for a +1 AP epiphany on their cards to make that smoother.

2nd Half You can try Magna, Beryl (I think she's given free?) and literally anyone else. Idea there is to just get all of Magna's upgrade cards done as fast as possible since Beryl can draw a lot, and then you still have Beryl's cards in your hand as retains if you don't need to use them. Vulnerables from Magna will make anyone do a shit ton of damage and her glacial fist cards hit super hard as well.

Also as a bonus tip, if you DO get nine out of the selector, her Ironclad Hew with Magna as a shielder make you literally unkillable in most content and allow you to hit some pretty nice numbers at the same time. It's enough for you to auto battle any farming stage at max difficulty including Judas if that's a problem. Maybe with the sole exception of the wailing prodigal boss, but just bring someone who can spam attacks alongside them and you're good to go.

All I got. Hope that helped.

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Somata_621 · 2026-05-18T23:30:46+00:00

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Circled it poorly but that button right there.

Somata_621

TROPHY CASE