Zenless Zone Zero – Ellen build and promotion guide

Check out the best W-Engines and Drive Discs for Ellen in Zenless Zone Zero

HoYoverse

Become an apex predator with the best Zenless Zone Zero Ellen build and cut annoying tasks down to size. This Ice Attack Agent is a ruthless melee fighter with high mobility and a rapid attack speed, primed to take down any prey.

Table of Contents

1. ZZZ – Ellen: best W-Engines
2. ZZZ – Ellen: best Drive Discs
3. ZZZ – Ellen: best team comps
4. ZZZ – Ellen: promotion materials

• Role: Attack
• Damage Type: Ice
• Faction: Victoria Housekeeping Co.
• Rarity: S-Rank

Ellen’s key mechanic revolves around obtaining and consuming stacks of Flash Freeze. You can get Flash Freeze in two ways: One is to execute EX Special Attacks and the second is to enter the Roaming State and perform Enhanced Dash Attacks. 

You can get into the Roaming State by holding the dash button. These Enhanced Dash Attacks will not only collect Flash Freeze, but are guaranteed to trigger Shatter when hitting Frozen enemies. Just like Basic Attacks enhanced by Flash Freeze, these Enhanced Dash Attacks get a massive bonus to CRIT DMG thanks to Ellen’s Core Skill.

If Ellen is teamed up with co-workers from Victoria Housekeeping Co. or other Ice Agents, she’ll gain a stacking Ice DMG boost whenever she deals Ice DMG to a target, allowing her to build up tons of momentum for a big finale.

Completing Ellen’s Mindscape Cinema by obtaining additional copies of her can further boost her might in combat. Level 1 speeds up Flash Freeze generation and provides Ellen with more CRIT Rate when consuming Flash Freeze. Level 2 opens up another combo, allowing Ellen to directly follow the third hit in her Basic Attack chain with an EX Special Attack and increasing the EX Special Attack’s CRIT DMG based on the current number of Flash Freeze charges. Level 4 recovers Energy and Flash Freeze charges for Ellen whenever an ally freezes or stuns a foe – plus, she gets the Quick Charge effect, which shortens the charging time of her Enhanced Dash Attack. 

Finally, Level 6 increases Ellen’s PEN Ratio significantly when she uses EX Special Attack or Chain Attack, or gains Quick Charge. Any of these events will also produce a stack of The Feast Begins. Using a Charged Scissor Attack during her Enhanced Dash Attack consumes The Feast Begins once three charges are reached, increasing the attack’s damage substantially.

ZZZ – Ellen: best W-Engines

Ellen’s signature W-Engine, Deep Sea Visitor, is an absolute beast of an equipment piece: CRIT Rate and Ice DMG get buffed right from the start and hitting enemies with Basic Attacks or dealing Ice DMG with Dash Attacks provides yet more CRIT Rate, transforming Ellen into a critical strike machine.

Best W-Engines for Ellen:

• Deep Sea Visitor (S-Rank)
• The Brimstone (S-Rank)
• Cannon Rotor (A-Rank)
• Street Superstar (A-Rank)
• Starlight Engine (A-Rank)
• [Lunar] Pleniluna (B-Rank)

Ellen can quickly cut any problems down to size. / HoYoverse

ZZZ – Ellen: best Drive Discs

Aside from the usual array of damage-boosting stats – CRIT Rate, CRIT DMG, ATK, and PEN – Ellen benefits from some additional Anomaly Mastery and Anomaly Proficiency. Since she has a rapid attack speed and can reliably trigger Shatter, this will allow you to regularly activate the full buff of Polar Metal and maximize the Shatter effect’s damage.

Best Drive Disc sets for Ellen:

• Polar Metal (4) + Puffer Electro (2): +10% Ice DMG, +20% Basic Attack and Dash Attack DMG and an additional +20% Basic Attack and Dash Attack DMG for 12 seconds after any squad member inflicts Freeze or Shatter on an enemy, +8% PEN Ratio.
• Polar Metal (4) + Woodpecker Electro (2): +10% Ice DMG, +20% Basic Attack and Dash Attack DMG and an additional +20% Basic Attack and Dash Attack DMG for 12 seconds after any squad member inflicts Freeze or Shatter on an enemy, +8% CRIT Rate.

Best Drive Disc stats for Ellen:

• Partition 1 – HP (Primary), CRIT Rate %, CRIT DMG %, ATK %, PEN
• Partition 2 – ATK (Primary), CRIT Rate %, CRIT DMG %, ATK %, PEN
• Partition 3 – DEF (Primary), CRIT Rate %, CRIT DMG %, ATK %, PEN
• Partition 4 – CRIT Rate % or CRIT DMG % (Primary), CRIT Rate % or CRIT DMG %, ATK %, PEN, Anomaly Proficiency
• Partition 5 – Ice DMG % (Primary), CRIT Rate %, CRIT DMG %, ATK %, PEN
• Partition 6 – Anomaly Mastery (Primary), CRIT Rate %, CRIT DMG %, ATK %, PEN

Ellen is only a part-timer at Victoria Housekeeping. Keep your eyes open in town and you'll see her in her school uniform. / HoYoverse

ZZZ – Ellen: best team comps

Ellen is an absolute monster in combat, but the right team can further increase the amount of punishment she can mete out.

• Ellen (Main DPS), Lycaon (Sub DPS), Soukaku (Support)
• Bangboo: Sharkboo

Lycaon and Soukaku both bring some excellent abilities to the table that improve Ellen’s DPS. The Stun Agent can reduce the enemy’s Ice DMG RES and enable Chain Attacks, while the flag-bearing Support Agent provides an Ice DMG buff to the entire team and bolsters the ATK of allies participating in Chain Attacks she’s initiated. This gives you a very clear rotation that smoothly leads from one Agent into the next.

If you're going for a Victoria Housekeeping-themed team, then Rina is a fantastic Support in lieu of Soukaku, as she can provide a boost to PEN Ratio.

Ellen has that "annoyed teenager" look down to perfection. / HoYoverse

ZZZ – Ellen: promotion materials

After obtaining Ellen, you’ll want to level her up as quickly as possible to make use of her talents in combat. Here are the materials required to upgrade her to Level 60:

• Basic Offense Certification Seal x4
• Advanced Offense Certification Seal x32
• Pioneer Certification Seal x30
• Dennies x800,000

You can obtain Certification Seals from the VR Combat Simulation. Advanced materials may be crafted using lower-level materials as well. Dennies can be earned in the VR Combat Simulation as well as through operating the Random Play video store.

Leveling Ellen up is only half the game, though – you’ll want to upgrade all of her skills as well to get the most out of her performance in battle. Here are the materials required to max out her Basic Attack, Dodge, Assist, Special Attack, and Chain Attack – we’re giving you the total you need, so just divide everything by five to get the materials needed for a single skill:

• Basic Freeze Chip x25
• Advanced Freeze Chip x75
• Specialized Freeze Chip x250
• Hamster Cage Pass x5
• Dennies x2,500,000

Chips can be farmed in the VR Combat Simulation with Advanced and Specialized Chips also being available through crafting. Hamster Cage Passes are a rare material that can be grabbed from time-limited events as well as the New Eridu City Fund.

Finally, you can upgrade her Core Skill six times to make Ellen stronger, for which you need the following materials:

• Higher Dimensional Data: Murderous Obituary x60
• Ferocious Grip x9
• Dennies x405,000

Higher Dimensional Data: Murderous Obituary is available from the Expert Challenge: Notorious – Dullahan, while Ferocious Grip must be acquired through Notorious Hunt: Newborn Dead End Butcher.