The Version 2.7 meta just flipped everything upside down
Zenless Zone Zero Version 2.7 dropped on March 24, 2026, with the player base now exceeding 50 million globally. Two fresh Agents joined the roster: Nangong Yu, leader of the Angels of Delusion, and Cissia, a Metropolitan Order Division Electric attacker arriving in Phase 2. Meanwhile, former top-tier picks like Ellen Joe, Zhu Yuan, and Jane Doe have all fallen to mid-tier status as current endgame enemy HP pools have ballooned. This guide ranks every playable Agent based on their performance in Shiyu Defense, viability in Deadly Assault, team composition flexibility, and how accessible their optimal builds are.
How does the tier system work in ZZZ?
Before diving into rankings, here's what each tier actually represents in high-difficulty content—not story mode:
- T0 (Meta-defining): Slots into nearly any composition, dominates both Shiyu Defense and Deadly Assault, and establishes the damage ceiling that defines the current meta.
- T0.5 (Elite): Matches T0 performance in optimized setups. Usually anchors the best elemental or Anomaly compositions. A safe investment for any account.
- T1 (Strong): Handles all content reliably but typically needs better Drive Disc rolls or specific teammates to compete with higher tiers.
- T2 (Viable): Functional picks that newer releases have outpaced. Still clears content but demands heavier investment to match Version 2.7 enemy scaling.
- T3 (Niche): Works in specific scenarios. Generally struggles to speed-clear Shiyu Defense compared to higher-tier options.
- T4 (Weak): Underperforms significantly in the current environment. Not worth heavy resource allocation.
Full ZZZ agent tier list at a glance
Shiyu Defense critical node setup
T0 agents: who defines the current meta?
Ye Shunguang (Physical / Attack)
Ye Shunguang sits at the absolute peak of the Version 2.7 meta. Her kit revolves around the Enlightened Mind state: she accumulates Qingming Sword Force through attacks, and at six stacks she enters Enlightened state by holding her basic attack or activating her Ultimate. During this window, her Physical DMG converts to Honed Edge DMG, she gains invulnerability during her airborne barrage, and she can trigger Ether Veil: Verdict to apply Veil Vulnerability, amplifying enemy damage taken. After extensive testing across multiple Deadly Assault rotations, the single-target burst she produces during Enlightened Mind consistently surpasses every other current DPS option. She pairs best with Dialyn for Rupture support and Astra Yao or Zhao for off-field buffing.
Nangong Yu (Ether / Stun)
Unlike traditional stunners who stack pure Impact, Nangong Yu converts her Anomaly Mastery directly into Impact. This means building Anomaly Proficiency simultaneously accelerates her Daze buildup and amplifies her Core Skill squad buffs. She bridges Stun and Anomaly in a way no previous Agent has achieved, making her the ideal stunner for Disorder compositions. Her passive requires Anomaly or Angels of Delusion teammates to activate, so she needs specific partners. The recommended premium composition is Nangong Yu (Stun), Aria (Anomaly), and Sunna (Support). For Drive Discs, the Phaethon's Melody 4-piece set with Anomaly Mastery on Slot 6 is the documented optimal configuration for maximizing her kit synergy.
Aria (Ether / Anomaly DPS)
Aria builds and consumes Fandom Power through basic attacks, chain attacks, and EX Specials. Once charged, the third hit of her basic attack triggers Abloom, dealing massive Attribute Anomaly damage that hits harder against stunned targets. Activating her Ultimate enters Moment of Delusion state, granting All-Out Cheering stacks for repeated enhanced basics plus a team ATK buff. She excels alongside Nangong Yu and Sunna, forming the core Angels of Delusion faction composition. Without Sunna, pairing her with Lycaon or Trigger still produces strong results.
Sunna (Physical / Support) and Ukinami Yuzuha (Physical / Support)
Sunna and Yuzuha are currently the two strongest support Agents in the game, both occupying T0 in the support role rankings. Sunna buffs squad ATK based on her own ATK, applies Cat's Gaze (detonatable by Attack or Anomaly Agents for bonus damage), boosts Stun DMG, and grants energy on entry. Yuzuha is purpose-built for Anomaly compositions: she provides up to 1,200 bonus combat ATK, 15% team-wide damage amplification, excellent energy generation, and a unique Dyeing mechanism that matches her element to teammates for faster Anomaly buildup. Her signature W-Engine adds roughly 15% DPS for the entire squad in optimized rotations.
Dialyn (Physical / Stun)
Dialyn combines top-tier Daze accumulation with team-wide buffs that older stunners cannot match. Her Rock-Paper-Scissors EX Special combo deals massive Daze, extends enemy stun time by 2 seconds, and grants up to 40% team damage. She can also trigger teammate Ultimates without consuming Decibels, which makes her rotation exceptionally flexible. She is the premier Rupture-synergy stunner and functions in virtually any high-end composition.
Dialyn EX stun combo in action
T0.5 agents: elite picks worth every resource
Yixuan (Rupture / Ether)
Yixuan is the game's first Rupture and Auric Ink hybrid Agent. Her damage scales with Sheer Force, a stat tied directly to her Max HP, and her attacks ignore enemy defenses entirely. She has a double Ultimate system (Qingming Sky Shade and Endless Talisman Suppression) that obliterates bosses during stun windows. She uses Adrenaline instead of traditional energy, which means standard energy buffs do not apply to her. Units like Pan Yinhu, Astra Yao, and Trigger are near-mandatory for optimal performance. She is tricky to pilot but rewards mastery with some of the highest sustained damage in the current roster.
Hoshimi Miyabi (Frost / Anomaly)
Miyabi remains the premier Ice Anomaly DPS despite anti-shill measures in certain Shiyu Defense rotations. Her Fallen Frost mechanic buffs her attacks, and her Frost attribute behaves differently from standard Ice, allowing Disorder reactions in mono-Ice compositions. The Freezing Polar Bear 4-piece Drive Disc set is essential for her Frostburn application rate, and her signature W-Engine Hailstar provides Anomaly Proficiency and Mastery bonuses. The premium composition is Miyabi with Yanagi and Astra Yao. For free-to-play players, Grace works as a substitute in the third slot.
Astra Yao (Ether / Support)
Astra Yao is the most flexible support in the game. Her Idyllic Cadenza state buffs team ATK significantly and continues amplifying damage even while she is off-field. Her Ultimate heals the entire team. She works equally well in CRIT-focused compositions with Ye Shunguang and in Anomaly compositions with Miyabi. For players investing in a single support, Astra Yao offers the highest return across the widest range of content types.
Yidhari (Ice / Rupture)
Yidhari converts all her Ice DMG into Sheer DMG, bypassing enemy DEF entirely. Her damage peaks when HP drops below 50%, at which point Skill DMG increases up to 100%. She gains Decibels from HP loss rather than landing attacks, and reaching 3,000 Decibels triggers Ether Veil: Wellspring, unlocking her Ultimate within a 30-second window. She also has a built-in revive mechanic. The optimal loop is using her Charged Basic Attack to drain health and build Decibels rapidly, then triggering Ether Veil: Wellspring before unleashing her Ultimate. Her best composition pairs her with Dialyn (Stun) and Lucia Elowen (Support).
Other T0.5 agents worth noting
Alice is a Physical Anomaly DPS whose Polarized Assaults ignore Anomaly buildup requirements entirely, triggering crit-scaling burst explosions on demand. Banyue converts all Fire damage into DEF-ignoring Sheer DMG that scales with Max HP, entering his Visage of Wrath state for high-frequency EX Special attacks during stun windows. Seed operates in Double DPS compositions through her Vanguard Protocol, designating the highest-ATK Attack teammate as her Vanguard and granting both agents massive ATK and CRIT DMG buffs. When both Onslaught and Direct Strike buffs are active, Seed and her Vanguard gain a 35% overall DMG multiplier. Lucia Elowen is the dedicated support for Rupture-based DPS Agents like Yixuan and Yidhari, providing massive CRIT Rate, CRIT DMG, and HP scaling amplification alongside off-field healing.
What happened to the old meta carries?
Version 2.7's inflated enemy HP pools have pushed several previously dominant Agents down to T2. Ellen Joe, once the strongest DPS in the game, now sits at T2 because Miyabi simply outperforms her in Ice team output. Zhu Yuan and Jane Doe face the same problem: their damage multipliers were designed for earlier content scaling. They remain viable with high investment but no longer efficient compared to the current T0 and T0.5 roster.
Rina has dropped to T3 in the support rankings, a significant fall from her earlier status. Her PEN ratio buff remains useful in heavily armored content, but newer supports offer more complete packages. Qingyi has dropped to T2 as a stunner, outpaced by Nangong Yu and Dialyn who provide substantially more team utility alongside their Daze output.
For players who already have these Agents built, they are not worthless. A well-built T2 character with good Drive Discs and proper team support can still clear all story content and participate in endgame. The issue is resource efficiency when choosing what to invest in next.
How do you build an effective team in Version 2.7?
Every competitive ZZZ composition follows the same basic structure: one primary DPS, one Stun Agent, and one Support. The Stun Agent fills the enemy Daze bar to trigger Chain Attacks, creating the burst window where your DPS deals the most damage. The Support amplifies that window through buffs, healing, or Anomaly acceleration.
Premium team compositions
- Triple Ether Core: Ye Shunguang + Astra Yao + Dialyn. Ether attribute synergy with damage, support, and Rupture shield coverage. Handles all content types.
- Angels of Delusion: Nangong Yu + Aria + Sunna. Faction synergy unlocks Core Skill passives. The strongest Disorder composition in Version 2.7.
- Frostburn Specialists: Miyabi + Yanagi + Astra Yao. Built around Miyabi's Anomaly damage with Yanagi enabling Disorder reactions.
- Rupture Core: Yidhari + Dialyn + Lucia Elowen. Defense-ignore damage from Yidhari, extended stun from Dialyn, and Rupture amplification from Lucia.
Accessible team compositions
- Universal Backbone: Soldier 0 Anby + Nicole + Qingyi. All obtainable without premium pulls. Soldier 0 Anby is the free S-rank every player receives, Nicole shreds enemy DEF, and Qingyi handles Stun.
- Fire Team: Evelyn + Lighter + Nangong Yu or Burnice. Lighter bridges Stun and Fire resonance, extending stun durations by 3 seconds and shredding Fire and Ice resistance by 15%.
Version 2.7 new character breakdown
Cissia (Electric / Attack) — Phase 2
Cissia from the Metropolitan Order Division uses a Venom mechanic. She starts combat with 3 Venom points that drain automatically over time, granting a CRIT Rate buff while active. Her Serpent's Kiss Basic Attack consumes all remaining Venom instantly for a heavy Electric burst. Holding her EX Special Attack consumes extra Energy to restore more Venom. Chain Attacks and Ultimates also restore points. The critical failure state is letting Venom expire naturally before triggering Serpent's Kiss, which severely drops her DPS. Her tier rating is pending final evaluation as of April 2026.
The recommended combo loop is: EX Special Attack (hold to generate Venom) → Ultimate (trigger Ether Veil: Cold-Blooded) → Basic Attack: Serpent's Kiss (consume all Venom for burst).
Pro tips for investing your resources efficiently
- Maximize one DPS before splitting resources. A fully invested Ye Shunguang or Miyabi carries further than three half-built characters.
- Drive Discs over signature W-Engines for free-to-play players. Perfect Drive Disc main stats provide more value than chasing signature weapons. Anomaly Proficiency on Slots IV and VI is the priority for Anomaly DPS Agents.
- Understand Mindscape Cinema breakpoints. Some characters transform at Mindscape 1 or 6 while others perform well at M0. Yixuan at M0 is already strong; Ye Shunguang sees the most dramatic gains at M1 and M6.
- Learn Perfect Dodge and Perfect Assist timing. Mechanical skill elevates any character's performance regardless of tier. These systems multiply damage windows significantly.
- Build for anti-shill diversity. Shiyu Defense rotates enemy weaknesses weekly. Having a T1 character in each major attribute is more valuable than having five T0 characters all sharing the same element.
For more character guides and team-building resources across ZZZ and other titles, browse more guides on GAMES.GG.