Quick answer: Phoenix is an S-Rank Fire Anomaly Agent, and she has been pullable since Zenless Zone Zero Version 3.3 went live on 21 October 2026. Her banner, "Into the Flames of Life", closes 2026/11/11 11:59 server time, which is 13 days from this update. The number that decides her build is 255 initial Anomaly Mastery. At that value her Core Passive gives every Attribute Anomaly hit on a Seared enemy a 100% CRIT Rate. Reaching it takes an S-Rank Anomaly Mastery W-Engine such as Plume of Rebirth or Angel in the Shell, an Anomaly Mastery Partition 6 disc and the Phaethon's Melody 2-piece. Run 4-piece Freedom Blues with it. Her best team is Phoenix + Velina + Remielle.
This page went up on 6 October, when Phoenix was only a name and a voice cast. On 20 October it covered her pre-release kit. She has now been live for eight days. The in-game skill text has the numbers HoYoverse's preview cards left out, the first bug fixes are in, and players have tested her outside the two official teams. This refresh turns the page into a full build guide.
Article status: updated 29 October 2026. Applies to Version 3.3 Phase I. Sources: HoYoverse's V3.3 update notice, Phase I channels notice, Agent Mechanics Intro and Known Issues list. Skill numbers are from the live in-game text, as mirrored on the Zenless Zone Zero wiki.
Is Phoenix out in Zenless Zone Zero, and when does her banner end?
Yes. Phoenix released with Version 3.3 "Journey to the Sky" on 21 October 2026. The Phase I notice runs all four channels "after the Version 3.3 update" until the same deadline:
| Channel | Type | Featured S-Rank | Ends (server time) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Into the Flames of Life | Exclusive (new) | Phoenix (Fire - Anomaly) | 2026/11/11 11:59 |
| Plume of Rebirth | W-Engine | Plume of Rebirth (Anomaly) | 2026/11/11 11:59 |
| Graceful Gale | Exclusive (rerun) | Velina (Wind - Anomaly) | 2026/11/11 11:59 |
| Joyau Dore | W-Engine | Joyau Dore (Anomaly) | 2026/11/11 11:59 |
Three rules from that notice matter. Phoenix "will not become available in the Star-Studded Cast Stable Channel", so this banner and a future rerun are the only ways to get her. Exclusive Channel pity is "cumulative across all Exclusive Channels", so pulls you made in 3.2 still count. W-Engine pity is a separate counter. Our pity system guide has the exact numbers for each channel.
Phase II starts at 12:00 the same day with Severian and a Norma rerun. The ZZZ 3.3 banners page has both phases side by side.
HoYoverse has already patched Phoenix twice. The Known Issues notice lists fixes for "an issue where Agent Phoenix's model behaves abnormally while in the city under certain circumstances" and for her role "displayed incorrectly on the Squad Recommendations interface of the Agent Guides function". Neither fix changes her combat numbers.
What does Phoenix's kit actually do in Zenless Zone Zero?
The preview card said Attribute Anomaly DMG "has a chance to CRIT". The live Core Passive, Nirvana, gives the numbers:
- When any squad member deals Anomaly DMG, the enemy enters Sear for 20s, and repeat hits refresh it.
- Anomaly DMG against a Seared enemy can crit with a base CRIT Rate of 30%.
- "If Phoenix's initial Anomaly Mastery exceeds 155, each point above this threshold increases this effect's CRIT Rate by an additional 0.7%, reaching its maximum value when Phoenix's initial Anomaly Mastery reaches 255."
- The Sear CRIT DMG grows from 12.5% to 25% as you level the Core Skill.
That 100-point window from 155 to 255 is worth 70 percentage points: 30% base plus 70% is a 100% CRIT Rate at the cap. Her Additional Ability, Krampus Ace, adds another 15% CRIT DMG, which Mobalytics' build page totals at 40%. The ability switches on when "another character in your squad is an Anomaly character or shares the same faction".
The rest of the loop:
- Pyre (max 120) comes from Combustion Attacks: Basic Attack hits 3 and 4, EX Specials and some other skills. A Perfect Block adds 5 Pyre, once every 10s.
- Holding Basic Attack spends 90 Pyre on Purifying Flame. If its finisher hits an enemy with an Attribute Anomaly, it triggers Abloom, extra damage worth a share of that Anomaly.
- Her Ultimate, Perpetual Resurrection, spends all her HP on a Fire explosion and leaves her Withered. Soul-Searching Blaze fires after a short delay or when she switches back in. It deals Fire damage, restores the HP she spent plus 10% of her Max HP, and can also Abloom.
- Rebirth stops her from being defeated by fatal damage. Her next switch-in restores 50% of her Max HP. In Investigation Zone mode it can trigger once every 1,200s.
What is the best W-Engine for Phoenix?
Choose the W-Engine by its advanced stat. Only an Anomaly Mastery engine keeps the 255 cap within reach.
| W-Engine | Rank | Advanced stat (Lv. 60) | What it does for Phoenix |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plume of Rebirth | S (signature) | Anomaly Mastery 30% | +90 Anomaly Proficiency; +40% Fire DMG for 20s whenever squad Anomaly DMG crits |
| Angel in the Shell | S | Anomaly Mastery 30% | +90 Anomaly Proficiency; the rest needs an Ether wielder, so for her it is a stat stick |
| Flight of Fancy | S | Anomaly Proficiency 90 | +40% Anomaly Buildup Rate; no Anomaly Mastery, so she sits below the cap |
| Electro-Lip Gloss | A | Anomaly Proficiency 75 | +10% ATK and +15% DMG at S1 while an enemy has an Attribute Anomaly |
| Weeping Gemini | A | ATK 25% | Up to 4 stacks of +30 Anomaly Proficiency from squad Anomalies |
Plume is built around her. Its trigger is an Anomaly crit, and Nirvana is what lets Anomaly damage crit. The in-game effect name is now "Hatching Day". It was "Emergence Day" on the preview card. zzz-build.com's team calculations (Prydwen data, Velina + Remielle team, 24 October) put Angel in the Shell at 88% of Plume's output. That makes it the closest substitute if you skip the W-Engine Channel, which is 75/25 rather than 50/50.
Which Drive Discs and main stats does Phoenix need?
Prydwen, Mobalytics and zzz-build.com all reach the same build: 4-piece Freedom Blues + 2-piece Phaethon's Melody.
| Set | Bonus | Why Phoenix wants it |
|---|---|---|
| Freedom Blues (4) | 2pc: +30 Anomaly Proficiency. 4pc: EX Special hit cuts the target's Anomaly Buildup RES to her attribute by 20% for 8s | Her EX loop applies it constantly, and it means faster Burn |
| Phaethon's Melody (2) | Anomaly Mastery +8% | The third piece of the 255 cap |
| Chaos Jazz (4), alternative | +15% Fire and Electric DMG; +20% EX and Assist DMG while off-field | Fire bonus without the RES shred |
Main stats:
- Partition 4: Anomaly Proficiency.
- Partition 5: Fire DMG Bonus. PEN Ratio or ATK% are the fallbacks.
- Partition 6: Anomaly Mastery. This is not optional. Mastery only comes from Partition 6 mains, W-Engine advanced stats, set bonuses and her Core Skill. It never rolls as a sub-stat.
Sub-stats: Anomaly Proficiency first, then ATK% and PEN.
The 255 checklist. Prydwen and Mobalytics agree on the three pieces: an S-Rank Anomaly Mastery W-Engine, an Anomaly Mastery Partition 6 and an Anomaly Mastery 2-piece set. Max her Core Skill too. Its enhancements add +36 Anomaly Mastery and +75 Base ATK. Build sites put her fully upgraded base at 152 Anomaly Mastery, and 152 x 1.68 = 255.36, so the 30% + 30% + 8% stack clears the cap with almost nothing spare. Leave any one piece out and her Sear CRIT Rate drops by 0.7% for every point you lose. You can still play her below the cap. You just get less from the passive that makes her worth pulling.
For the wider set picture across every Agent, see our ZZZ best Drive Discs guide.
What are the best Phoenix teams in ZZZ 3.3?
| Team | Source | Why it works |
|---|---|---|
| Phoenix + Velina + Remielle | HoYoverse (Mechanics Intro) | Three Anomaly Agents. Krampus Ace is on, and Velina's Vortex and Remielle's damage both count as Anomaly DMG, so both can crit on Sear |
| Phoenix + Velina + Yuzuha | HoYoverse (Mechanics Intro) | Velina still switches on Krampus Ace; Yuzuha takes the Support slot |
| Phoenix + Vivian + Yuzuha | Icy Veins, zzz-build.com | The second Anomaly Agent is Ether, not Wind |
| Phoenix + Nangong Yu + Remielle | zzz-build.com, player testing | Nangong Yu (Ether Stun) brings the stun window; Remielle keeps the Anomaly count at two |
Velina is the big one. Icy Veins placed Phoenix in T0 but warned that "she unfortunately has a huge 34% decrease in her performance without Velina", and added that "Vivian is basically the only option outside of Velina." Both of HoYoverse's teams run through her, and she is on the same Phase I banner. Our Velina guide covers her build and Energy cap.
No Velina? That came up again and again this week. One r/ZenlessZoneZero player who is not pulling Velina asked whether "remie burnice or remie nangong" would work. Replies leaned toward Nangong Yu with Remielle. A separate post reported "40k score with Burnice" while conceding "Velina is still by far the best sub dps for this team". One commenter explained why same-attribute teams hold up: "phoenix doesn't like disorder so it's only natural that it works well in a team that physically can't trigger disorder and can only do burn, abloom and luminize."
That reading fits the kit. Phoenix pays off on Anomaly crits and Abloom, not on Disorder. A Fire partner like Burnice cannot trigger Disorder with her, so the team's Burns are never cashed out into Disorder. These player reports come from individual accounts, so treat them as starting points, not a damage ranking. For more comps, see our ZZZ best teams guide.
What does it cost to level Phoenix and what do her Mindscapes add?
At Lv. 60 she has 7,673 Base HP, 797 Base ATK and 612 Base DEF. Farm these before the banner ends so she can play the day you pull her:
| Upgrade | Total cost |
|---|---|
| Promotion (1 to 5) | 800,000 Denny · 4 Basic, 32 Advanced Anomaly Certification Seals · 30 Controller Certification Seals |
| Core Skill (to max) | 405,000 Denny · 9 Counterfeit Nucleus · 60 Higher Dimensional Data: Bloodstained Miasma Feather |
| Plume of Rebirth | Anomaly Component line |
Mindscape highlights, from the in-game text:
- M1: enters battle with 1 Ascension, +25% CRIT DMG on Sear Anomaly hits, and +15% Pyre generation.
- M2: her Burn lasts 2s longer and she deals +30% DMG to Seared enemies.
- M4: Soul-Searching Blaze and Purifying Flame finishers trigger one extra Abloom at a fixed 600% multiplier.
- M6: ignores 15% All-Attribute RES, and her Abloom ignores 40% DEF.
M3 and M5 are skill-level boosts. Our read: for most accounts, M0 with Plume beats M1 without it, because Plume also provides the Anomaly Mastery that M1 cannot replace.
Should you pull Phoenix before 11 November?
Phoenix sits in the Anomaly top tier on every major list we checked, Icy Veins and Mobalytics included. Our ZZZ tier list has her current placement. Here is how we would decide:
- You own Velina: Phoenix is the Agent built for her. Pull, then spend on Plume if you have the budget.
- You own neither: Phoenix and Velina are on the same banner phase. HoYoverse built both official teams around the pair, so a single Phoenix copy without Velina is a weaker purchase.
- Saving for Severian or 3.4: Severian is a Wind Attack DPS, not an Anomaly Agent. If you run Anomaly teams, Phoenix is the bigger upgrade. Our next banner guide has the Phase II dates.
- Still unsure: the free "The Final Callback" Audition Stage (Inter-Knot Lv. 8) lets you trial Phoenix and Velina until Phase I ends.
Whatever you choose, the deadline is 11:59 server time on 11 November, not midnight.
Planning the rest of Version 3.3? These guides pick up where this one stops:
- ZZZ 3.3 banners: Phase I and Phase II
- ZZZ W-Engine tier list
- ZZZ Severian: the Phase II Agent
- ZZZ pity system explained
FAQ
Is Phoenix out in ZZZ? Yes. She released with Version 3.3 on 21 October 2026, and her Exclusive Channel "Into the Flames of Life" runs until 2026/11/11 11:59 server time.
How much Anomaly Mastery does Phoenix need? 255 initial Anomaly Mastery. From 155 up, each point adds 0.7% to her Sear CRIT Rate on top of the 30% base, which maxes out at 255. That takes an Anomaly Mastery W-Engine, an Anomaly Mastery Partition 6 and the Phaethon's Melody 2-piece.
What is Phoenix's best Drive Disc set? 4-piece Freedom Blues with 2-piece Phaethon's Melody. Use Anomaly Proficiency on Partition 4, Fire DMG on Partition 5 and Anomaly Mastery on Partition 6.
What is the best F2P W-Engine for Phoenix? Electro-Lip Gloss or Weeping Gemini are the A-Rank options. At S5, zzz-build.com's calc puts them at about 84% and 82% of Plume. Neither has an Anomaly Mastery advanced stat, so she sits below the 255 cap with them. Angel in the Shell is the closest S-Rank substitute for Plume of Rebirth.
Can Phoenix work without Velina? Yes, but she is weaker. Icy Veins measured a 34% drop without Velina and named Vivian as the main replacement. Players also report good results with Nangong Yu and Remielle, or with Burnice.
Will Phoenix be added to the standard banner? No. HoYoverse's Phase I notice says she "will not become available in the Star-Studded Cast Stable Channel".
