Guide
How the kit works
Use Basic Attack: Don't Move! in Assault Mode to build ammunition. Its fourth or fifth hit grants one Enhanced Shotshell, with a maximum of one per activation. Zhu Yuan also gains six Enhanced Shotshells when she enters the battlefield.
Hold the Basic Attack input to switch to Suppressive Mode and fire Basic Attack: Please Do Not Resist. Each shot consumes one Enhanced Shotshell if available and deals Ether damage; without one, the shots deal Physical damage. Release the input to return to Assault Mode. You can adjust direction during either mode's attack.
EX Special Attack: Full Barrage (Special) spends Energy, grants three Enhanced Shotshells and makes Zhu Yuan invulnerable during the move. Chain Attack: Eradication Mode and Ultimate: Max Eradication Mode each grant three as well. Use these to prepare more shots, especially when an enemy is Stunned.
Dodge Counter: Fire Blast grants one Enhanced Shotshell when used during a Perfect Dodge. After an Evasive Assist, Assist Follow-Up: Defensive Counter grants three. Both make Zhu Yuan invulnerable during the move.
Build and why
For a four-piece set, start with Dawn's Bloom. Its two-piece effect increases Basic Attack damage by 15%, and its four-piece effect adds 20%. As an Attack character, Zhu Yuan gets another 20% Basic Attack damage for 25 seconds after an EX Special Attack or Ultimate. The game's recommended setup is four pieces of Chaotic Metal with two pieces of Woodpecker Electro.
Chaotic Metal gives 10% Ether DMG with two pieces and 20% CRIT DMG with four. Corruption DMG triggered by any squad member adds 5.5% CRIT DMG per stack, up to six stacks for eight seconds. Two pieces of Woodpecker Electro give 8% CRIT Rate. Both stats fit Zhu Yuan's damage-focused build.
Use CRIT DMG or CRIT Rate on disc 4, Ether DMG Bonus or Percent ATK on disc 5, and Percent ATK on disc 6. For substats, look for CRIT Rate first, then CRIT DMG and Percent ATK. Remember that her additional ability can already provide 30% CRIT Rate.
Cordis Germina is the first weapon choice: it gives 15% CRIT Rate, and at two stacks its Basic Attack and Ultimate damage ignore 20% of enemy DEF. Its Electric DMG bonus does not improve Zhu Yuan's Ether shots. The Brimstone builds ATK stacks through Basic Attacks, Dash Attacks and Dodge Counters. Riot Suppressor Mark VI gives 15% CRIT Rate and, after an EX Special Attack, grants eight charges that increase the damage of qualifying Ether Basic Attacks or Dash Attacks by 35%.
Leveling priority
Follow the game's order: upgrade the core passive first, then Basic Attack, Chain Attack, Special Attack, Assist and Dodge. The core improves the mechanic around Enhanced Shotshells, while Basic Attack is where you spend them. Chain Attack comes next, ahead of Special Attack.
For maximum ascension, you need 800,000 Denny, 4 Basic Attack Certification Seal, 32 Advanced Attack Certification Seal and 30 Pioneer's Certification Seal.
For all skills, the listed total is 2,905,000 Denny, 25 Basic Ether Chip, 75 Advanced Ether Chip, 250 Specialized Ether Chip, 5 Hamster Cage Pass, 9 Living Drive and 60 Higher Dimensional Data: Ethereal Pursuit.
Mindscapes worth it
Quick Reload is a good first upgrade to consider. After a Chain Attack or Ultimate, using up all Enhanced Shotshells consumes Quick Reload and grants six or nine shots respectively. That gives you another supply without returning immediately to Assault Mode.
Ether Ember makes Suppressive Mode safer with increased Anti-Interrupt and 10% less damage taken. Enhanced Shotshell hits also make the target take 10% more Ether damage from Zhu Yuan's Suppressive Mode Basic Attack and Dash Attack per stack, up to five stacks for five seconds. Ether Perforation is another damage option: Enhanced Shotshell hits make those two attacks ignore 25% of the target's Ether RES.
You can leave Public Security Special Training and Special Ops Experience aside if you prefer upgrades that change her mechanics; both add two levels to her main skill categories. Expanded Energy Pack III is worth considering for its reduced cost and extra bullets on an EX Special Attack after 12 Enhanced Shotshells are consumed, but it is not needed to play the base rotation.
Common mistakes
Do not hold Suppressive Mode attacks without checking your ammunition. Once the Enhanced Shotshells are gone, the shots deal Physical damage instead. Refill with Assault Mode or an available skill before committing to more held attacks.
Do not spend every Enhanced Shotshell before a Stun window if you can prepare for it. The core passive's damage increase is larger against Stunned enemies. Also check the condition for the additional ability: without a Support or a faction teammate, the 30% CRIT Rate effect will not activate.
When comparing gear, do not count Cordis Germina's Electric DMG bonus as Ether damage. With Chaotic Metal, remember that its extra CRIT DMG stacks require Corruption DMG from the squad; the base four-piece bonus does not require those stacks.
