InZenless Zone Zero, there is a specific distinction of characters for “support”. However, there are many more characters that can provide additional support utility to the team. That being the case, for this article’s purposes, support characters is a broad term that includes not only in-game support role but also characters specializing in stun and defense. These characters play essential roles in maintaining team synergy and overall effectiveness in battles. Stun characters typically control the battlefield by incapacitating enemies and giving the DPS opening to deal significant damage, defense characters shield the team from damage, and traditional support characters offer buffs, crowd control and other utilities to enhance the team’s performance. This diverse range of support roles allows players to create well-rounded teams capable of adapting to various challenges.
Each support character inZenless Zone Zerooffers unique strengths and utilities, contributing significantly to team dynamics. However, some characters bring additional synergy with the rest of the characters in the roster, and also go beyond their singular role to bring added benefits to the team composition. While the best support characters are subject to change with newer characters being added, here’s how all characters fare in launch version ofZenless Zone Zero.
Attribute:Ice
Faction:Victoria Housekeeping Co.
Lycaon, an Ice Stunner, is one of the top characters players can obtain from the standard pool, especially for those focused on the meta. His synergy with top-tier support units like Rina and Soukaku is excellent, and he is the perfect teammate for Ellen. Lycaon’s core ability inflicts Ice Resistance Shred on enemies, making him incredibly valuable for Ice teams. Even outside of mono-Ice team compositions, Lycaon excels due to his high daze and stun multipliers, which enable frequent Chain Attacks. His versatility and effectiveness make him a standout character in various team setups, and give him the title of best support character on launch.
Attribute:Electric
Not far behind Lycaon, Rina stands out as a versatile Electric support unit. Her universal buffs, including a RES PEN Ratio buff, significantly boost the team’s damage output. While she excels in teams with other Electric characters due to her ability to enhance Shock application and duration, her versatility allows her to fit well in various team compositions. Rina’s kit is straightforward and easy to grasp, making her accessible for players of all skill levels. Additionally, her excellent mobility on the field, with long-range dashes, adds a degree of crowd control to her utility, making her a valuable asset in any team.
Faction:Section 6
Similar to Lycaon, Soukaku excels in mono-Ice teams with her Ice DMG buffs and impressive anomaly build-up for Freeze and Shatter effects, enhancing overall team synergy. Even in non-Ice-oriented teams, Soukaku shines by providing a massive ATK buff, a standout feature given that she is a freely available 4-star character. However, she does fall slightly behind other support units like Rina due to her lower versatility.Soukaku requires more extensive buildingand has a more complex rotation to manage, relying heavily on maintaining full vortex stacks to maximize her buffs. Despite these challenges, she remains a powerful support character with the potential to significantly boost team performance.
Attribute:Fire
Faction:Belobog Heavy Industries
Koleda is currently the second-best stunner in the game and arguably a better choice for characters like Soldier 11 or Grace than Lycaon due to her higher synergy with them. Her kit is easy to master and can be fully utilized without heavy investment or strict rotations.Koleda fits well in many teamsas a stunner, even without worrying about attribute or faction synergy, although she pairs exceptionally well with Ben. However, this could be seen as a downside, given that Ben isn’t a particularly popular support unit at launch. Despite this, Koleda’s versatility and ease of use make her a valuable addition to various team compositions.
Faction:Sons of Calydon
Similar to Rina, Lucy can deploy units (in her case, boars) even when she’s off the field, making her a highly useful support unit for dealing additional damage and Daze.She is relatively easy to play, with quick rotations and minimal on-field time if desired. Lucy can grant the entire team a flat ATK boost, albeit smaller than Soukaku’s. However, her versatility and ease of use allow her to fit into a wide variety of teams, particularly with characters like Piper, Agent 11, and Koleda, who have the most synergy with her. This makes Lucy the second-best 4-star support unit behind Soukaku.
Attribute:Ether
Faction:Cunning Hares
Nicole may not see as much play as other support units, primarily due to her limited synergy with strong DPS characters rather than a lack of utility. As the only Ether character until the arrival of Zhu Yuan, and unable to create a mono-Ether team for now,Nicole is often a lower priority for buildingdue to the lack of synergistic options. However, she does pair well with Billy or Nekomata and has great potential with future Ether units. Nicole offers an Ether DMG buff, significant DEF shred, and some crowd control, although she requires frequent swaps into the field to maintain her debuffs due to their short duration. Players who enjoy quick swap teams may still find her quite valuable.
Anby is the only entirely free-to-play stunner, making her a popular choice for players who haven’t obtained Lycaon or Koleda. While useful, her Daze and Stun modifiers are lower compared to these S-Rank characters, and she requires precise timing for tapping or holding attacks, making her more challenging to master.However, when executed correctly, Anby can stun enemies swiftly due to her increased speed, providing significant value to players who take the time to learn her mechanics.
As the only Defense character,Ben has the unique ability to create a shieldfor the entire team. However, Defense characters aren’t as favored in the current end-game content, so he isn’t often appreciated in many teams, except for those involving Koleda due to their specific synergy. Despite this, Ben remains a valuable option for free-to-play players. He can function as a stunner despite his primary role as a tank and provides a Crit Rate buff to Fire attribute or Belobog Heavy Industries faction characters. Players keen on using Ben should be mindful of his significantly lower movement speed, which can be clunky when frequent repositioning is needed during battles.
Zenless Zone Zero
WHERE TO PLAY
Don’t go into the Hollows.I know, I know, there’s Ether in the Hollows, bizarre creations, even heritage of the old civilization, all precious treasures. But don’t forget, there’s also spatial disorder, monsters and mutants running rampant, and ultimately, a disaster that could swallow the world. They are not a place where ordinary people should go.So don’t go into Hollows.Or at least, don’t go in alone.If you insist on getting into danger, go to New Eridu first.This city where the good and the bad mix has many people who need the Hollows: Powerful wealthy tycoons, gangs that stalk the streets, conspiracy nuts, and ruthless officials.Make your preparations there, find strong allies, and most importantly—Find a “Proxy”.Only they can guide people out of the maze-like Hollows.Good luck!
