Nangong Yu joined Zenless Zone Zero in Version 2.7 on March 24, 2026. As an S-Rank Ether Stun agent from Angels of Delusion, she brings more than just Daze. Her kit also supports Attribute Anomaly teams through Abloom, Disorder, and an extended Stun window. If you're building her now, the main challenge is deciding how far to invest in her skills while keeping enough resources for Core Skill upgrades.
A fully upgraded Nangong Yu needs 300 Senior Investigator Logs, 66 Stun Certification Seals across three tiers, 350 Ether Chips, 9 Marrow-Draining Thorns, 60 Spiked Corruption Cores, 5 Hamster Cage Passes, and 3,705,000 Dennies. These figures cover her Lv.60 promotion, all five standard skills at Lv.12, and Core Skill A through F. For more information about her debut, see the Zenless Zone Zero 2.7 banner schedule.
Nangong Yu Materials: Full Lv.60 Checklist
Before spending Battery Charge, separate character promotion, standard skills, and Core Skill upgrades. They use different resources, and the full-build total includes all three categories. The checklist below assumes Nangong Yu starts at Lv.1 with all five standard skills at Lv.1 and no Core Skill upgrades unlocked. Her signature W-Engine and Drive Discs are separate investments.
| Material | Total Needed | Where to Get It |
|---|---|---|
| Senior Investigator Log | 300 | Combat Simulation: Investigation Specialization |
| Denny | 3,705,000 | Combat Simulation: Bounty Specialization; commissions and other rewards |
| Basic Stun Certification Seal | 4 | Combat Simulation: Stun Drill |
| Advanced Stun Certification Seal | 32 | Combat Simulation: Stun Drill |
| Buster Certification Seal | 30 | Combat Simulation: Stun Drill |
| Basic Ether Chip | 25 | Combat Simulation: Resonance Test |
| Advanced Ether Chip | 75 | Combat Simulation: Resonance Test |
| Specialized Ether Chip | 250 | Combat Simulation: Resonance Test |
| Hamster Cage Pass | 5 | New Eridu City Fund and eligible event rewards |
| Marrow-Draining Thorn | 9 | Notorious Hunt: Sanguine Sweeper |
| Higher Dimensional Data: Spiked Corruption Core | 60 | Expert Challenge: Miasma Walker - Scorpse |
The 3,705,000 Denny requirement already includes promotion, standard skill upgrades, and Core Skill upgrades. You do not need to add another 800,000 Denny for promotion. The full breakdown is 800,000 for promotion, 2,500,000 for five standard skills, and 405,000 for Core Skill A-F.
For character EXP, 300 Senior Investigator Logs provide the required Lv.1-60 experience. Lower-grade Investigator Logs can also be used, but the number of items will differ. Keeping the EXP requirement separate from the Denny budget makes it easier to check what your account is actually missing.
Nangong Yu Leveling and Promotion Materials
Nangong Yu uses Stun Certification Seals because her specialty is Stun, even though her attacks deal Ether DMG. That distinction matters when farming: Stun Certification Seals unlock her level caps, while Ether Chips improve her standard skills. Farming one does not replace the other.
Promotion Costs from Lv.10 to Lv.60
Her promotion requirements follow the standard five-breakthrough path. Each promotion increases the available level cap, and the higher tiers require progressively more expensive seals. You can calculate the complete promotion cost from the individual stages below.
| Promotion | Required Materials | Denny Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Lv.10 → 20 | 4 Basic Stun Certification Seals | 24,000 |
| Lv.20 → 30 | 12 Advanced Stun Certification Seals | 56,000 |
| Lv.30 → 40 | 20 Advanced Stun Certification Seals | 120,000 |
| Lv.40 → 50 | 10 Buster Certification Seals | 200,000 |
| Lv.50 → 60 | 20 Buster Certification Seals | 400,000 |
| Total | 4 Basic + 32 Advanced + 30 Buster Seals | 800,000 |
The seal totals come directly from adding the five promotion steps: 12 + 20 = 32 Advanced Stun Certification Seals, while 10 + 20 = 30 Buster Certification Seals. The Denny costs also add up to exactly 800,000. No estimated quantities are needed.
All three seal tiers can be obtained through Stun Drill in the Agent Promotion section of Combat Simulation at the HIA Club. Higher-level challenges provide access to higher-grade materials, and the game's material crafting system can help convert lower-grade seals when needed. For Agent EXP, use Investigation Specialization in Combat Simulation, while Bounty Specialization is the direct farming option for Dennies.
Nangong Yu Skill Upgrade Materials and Costs
Nangong Yu has five standard skill branches: Basic Attack, Dodge, Assist, Special Attack, and Chain Attack. Each follows the same Lv.1-12 upgrade cost. Rather than assigning different Ether Chip quantities to individual skills, calculate the cost of one complete skill first, then multiply by the number of skills you intend to upgrade.
One Standard Skill: Lv.1 to Lv.12
| Skill Level | Required Materials | Denny Cost |
|---|---|---|
| 1 → 2 | 2 Basic Ether Chips | 2,000 |
| 2 → 3 | 3 Basic Ether Chips | 3,000 |
| 3 → 4 | 2 Advanced Ether Chips | 6,000 |
| 4 → 5 | 3 Advanced Ether Chips | 9,000 |
| 5 → 6 | 4 Advanced Ether Chips | 12,000 |
| 6 → 7 | 6 Advanced Ether Chips | 18,000 |
| 7 → 8 | 5 Specialized Ether Chips | 45,000 |
| 8 → 9 | 8 Specialized Ether Chips | 67,500 |
| 9 → 10 | 10 Specialized Ether Chips | 90,000 |
| 10 → 11 | 12 Specialized Ether Chips | 112,500 |
| 11 → 12 | 15 Specialized Ether Chips + 1 Hamster Cage Pass | 135,000 |
| Total per skill | 5 Basic + 15 Advanced + 50 Specialized Ether Chips + 1 Hamster Cage Pass | 500,000 |
Multiplying that final row by five gives the complete standard skill cost: 25 Basic Ether Chips, 75 Advanced Ether Chips, 250 Specialized Ether Chips, 5 Hamster Cage Passes, and 2,500,000 Dennies. The same upgrade curve applies to every standard skill, so the number of skills you choose to finish directly determines your remaining material cost.
Skill Priority for Limited Resources
Maxing all five branches is a clear completion target, but it is not the only sensible stopping point. Nangong Yu's charged Basic Attack is central to her combat flow, while her Core Skill provides much of the team utility that makes her valuable in Anomaly-focused setups. If your stockpile is limited, spending everything on Dodge and Assist before developing those parts of her kit would leave her more important mechanics underinvested.
A practical upgrade order is Core Skill and Basic Attack first, followed by Chain Attack and Special Attack, with Assist and Dodge afterward. Her Basic Attack includes Adorable Explosive Impact, the charged sequence that consumes Downbeats and deals substantial Daze. Chain Attack and Special Attack support her damage and Stun contribution, while Assist and Dodge remain useful without needing to compete for the first Hamster Cage Passes.
Each skill also has a separate Lv.12 requirement. If you only plan to max Basic Attack, reserve 1 Hamster Cage Pass and the materials for one skill rather than preparing all five passes immediately. That leaves more flexibility for other agents on your account.
Core Skill Materials: Marrow-Draining Thorn and Spiked Corruption Core
Nangong Yu's Core Skill uses a different upgrade path from her standard skills. Core Passive: Prodigious Idol progresses through ranks A-F and requires Higher Dimensional Data: Spiked Corruption Core along with Marrow-Draining Thorn at the later ranks. These materials come from specific boss challenges, so choosing the correct enemy matters more than simply running any high-level stage.
| Core Skill Rank | Required Materials | Denny Cost |
|---|---|---|
| A | No boss materials | 5,000 |
| B | 2 Spiked Corruption Cores | 12,000 |
| C | 4 Spiked Corruption Cores | 28,000 |
| D | 9 Spiked Corruption Cores + 2 Marrow-Draining Thorns | 60,000 |
| E | 15 Spiked Corruption Cores + 3 Marrow-Draining Thorns | 100,000 |
| F | 30 Spiked Corruption Cores + 4 Marrow-Draining Thorns | 200,000 |
| Total A-F | 60 Spiked Corruption Cores + 9 Marrow-Draining Thorns | 405,000 |
The totals are straightforward to verify: 2 + 4 + 9 + 15 + 30 = 60 Spiked Corruption Cores, and 2 + 3 + 4 = 9 Marrow-Draining Thorns. The full Denny cost is 405,000. Rank A only needs Dennies, while Marrow-Draining Thorns first enter the requirement at Rank D.
Why Core Skill Investment Matters
Her Core Passive is more than a personal damage upgrade. At Lv.6, Prodigious Idol increases Nangong Yu's Anomaly Proficiency by 120, while initial Anomaly Mastery above 110 converts into additional Impact at a one-to-one ratio. Hitting an enemy with Adorable Explosive Impact or The Unbearable Weight of Love also grants increased Anomaly Buildup and Daze, alongside a 25% squad DMG bonus lasting 30 seconds.
Her Additional Ability, Angel Captain, adds further value when another squad member is an Anomaly agent or shares her faction. It increases Anomaly Buildup against Stunned enemies and allows certain attacks to trigger Polarity Disorder through Dance Prowess. Misstep can also increase the Stun DMG Multiplier by 30% and extend Stun duration by 3 seconds, subject to its triggering conditions. These mechanics explain why investing in her Core Skill is especially relevant when she is supporting a team built around Attribute Anomalies rather than acting as a conventional damage dealer.
Where to Farm Nangong Yu Materials
Most of Nangong Yu's regular upgrade materials come from Combat Simulation at the HIA Club. Her two Core Skill boss drops have specific targets, and Hamster Cage Passes follow a separate reward system. Checking these routes before spending Battery Charge prevents the common mistake of farming a material category that sounds correct but does not match her actual requirements.
HIA Combat Simulation: Seals, Ether Chips, EXP and Dennies
For Stun Certification Seals, select Agent Promotion → Stun Drill. For Ether Chips, use Agent Skill → Resonance Test. Investigation Specialization provides Investigator Logs for leveling, while Bounty Specialization is used to farm Dennies. The higher-grade rewards are tied to the appropriate challenge tiers, so check the available difficulty before committing your Battery Charge.
Among her ordinary farmable materials, 250 Specialized Ether Chips represent a large share of the total skill investment. If all five skills are your goal, the Resonance Test will remain relevant for much longer than it would for a build that stops after upgrading only the main combat skills.
Expert Challenge: Miasma Walker - Scorpse
Higher Dimensional Data: Spiked Corruption Core comes from the Miasma Walker - Scorpse in Expert Challenge at the HIA Club. It is not a Notorious Hunt drop, so there is no reason to spend weekly boss reward claims on unrelated enemies when collecting this material.
At the Lv.55 Expert Challenge difficulty, each clear provides 5 Spiked Corruption Cores for 40 Battery Charge. Collecting all 60 at this reward level requires 12 clears and 480 Battery Charge. Lower-level challenges provide fewer materials, so this calculation assumes you have unlocked the higher-difficulty stage.
Notorious Hunt: Sanguine Sweeper
For Marrow-Draining Thorn, head to Scott Outpost and select Sanguine Sweeper in Notorious Hunt. Each claimed reward grants 1 Marrow-Draining Thorn, so Nangong Yu's complete Core Skill progression calls for 9 reward claims from this encounter.
Notorious Hunt provides three free reward claims per week. If you rely only on those free claims and spend all three on Sanguine Sweeper, the 9 required Thorns take three weekly allotments. You can also use Pursuit to the Depths after the free claims are exhausted, spending 60 Battery Charge for an additional boss reward claim. This makes the material a farming priority without requiring you to wait for three weekly resets.
Sanguine Sweeper is weak to Electric and Ether and resists Fire. If the fight is slowing down your farming, checking those weaknesses before building your challenge team is more useful than simply raising the difficulty and repeating unsuccessful attempts.
Hamster Cage Pass: City Fund and Event Rewards
Hamster Cage Passes cannot be farmed from the standard Combat Simulation stages. They are distributed through sources such as New Eridu City Fund and qualifying event rewards. Certain limited-time events also award passes, but those opportunities change over time.
Because every standard skill requires one pass for its final Lv.11-12 upgrade, the full five-skill build needs five passes. If you are short on them, decide which skills actually need Lv.12 before spending any. Unlike regular Ether Chips, this resource cannot simply be replaced by additional Resonance Test runs.
How to Spend Battery Charge Efficiently
A fixed 14-day schedule is not necessary once the exact material targets are known. Two accounts with different stockpiles should not be using the same daily farming route. The better approach is to clear limited-reward opportunities, cover the promotion materials required for your next level cap, and then invest the remaining Battery Charge according to your planned skill levels.
- Check Sanguine Sweeper first: Use available free Notorious Hunt rewards to collect Marrow-Draining Thorns if you intend to develop Nangong Yu's later Core Skill ranks.
- Cover your next promotion: Farm the Stun Certification Seals needed for the next level cap rather than automatically collecting all 66 before starting her build.
- Keep the Core Skill moving: Run Expert Challenge against Miasma Walker - Scorpse for Spiked Corruption Cores, especially if you are approaching ranks D, E, or F.
- Invest Ether Chips where they count: Prioritize the Basic Attack branch, then work through Chain Attack and Special Attack according to your intended level of investment.
- Protect scarce upgrade items: Save Hamster Cage Passes for skills you genuinely plan to raise to Lv.12, and use Investigation Specialization or Bounty Specialization when EXP or Dennies become the limiting resource.
There is also no need to farm all five Hamster Cage Passes before Nangong Yu becomes useful. A more realistic goal for many accounts is Lv.60, a well-developed Core Skill, and investment in the attacks that support her Stun and Anomaly gameplay. The full-max checklist remains useful, but it should be treated as a resource ceiling rather than a requirement for every account.
Full Investment vs. a Focused Build
To understand the cost difference, compare one fully upgraded standard skill with all five. A single Lv.1-12 skill needs 5 Basic Ether Chips, 15 Advanced Ether Chips, 50 Specialized Ether Chips, 1 Hamster Cage Pass, and 500,000 Dennies. Raising all five to Lv.12 multiplies that requirement by five. The extra expense is substantial, especially for an account that is also building other characters.
Core Skill upgrades are a separate decision. Completing ranks A-F uses 405,000 Dennies and the two dedicated boss materials, regardless of whether all five standard skills have reached Lv.12. This separation lets you develop Nangong Yu's team utility without immediately committing another 2,500,000 Dennies to maxing every standard skill.
Her build priorities also connect directly to her combat role. Charged attacks consume Downbeats, while Prodigious Idol and Angel Captain reward teams that generate Attribute Anomalies during Stun windows. For specific Drive Disc choices, W-Engine options, and team setups, the Nangong Yu build and team guide covers those decisions separately.
Nangong Yu Materials FAQ
Q: How many Dennies do you need to fully upgrade Nangong Yu?
A: A fully upgraded Nangong Yu requires 3,705,000 Dennies. That includes 800,000 for character promotion, 2,500,000 for all five standard skills at Lv.12, and 405,000 for Core Skill A-F. Her W-Engine and Drive Disc upgrades are not included.
Q: Which boss drops Nangong Yu's Core Skill materials?
A: Marrow-Draining Thorn comes from Sanguine Sweeper in Notorious Hunt, while Higher Dimensional Data: Spiked Corruption Core comes from Miasma Walker - Scorpse in Expert Challenge. You'll need 9 Thorns and 60 Spiked Corruption Cores to complete Core Skill A-F.
Q: Does Nangong Yu need five Hamster Cage Passes?
A: Only if you plan to upgrade all five standard skills to Lv.12. Each skill requires one Hamster Cage Pass for its final upgrade. If you're short on passes, prioritize Basic Attack before spending them on less frequently used skills.
Q: What should you farm first for Nangong Yu?
A: Start by checking your available Notorious Hunt rewards for Marrow-Draining Thorns, then work on the Stun Certification Seals needed for your next promotion. Spiked Corruption Cores and Ether Chips can be farmed according to your Core Skill and standard skill targets. There's no need to max every skill before putting Nangong Yu into a team.
Conclusion
Building Nangong Yu doesn't require maxing every skill at once. Her full Lv.60 build costs 3,705,000 Dennies, 300 Senior Investigator Logs, 66 Stun Certification Seals, 350 Ether Chips, 9 Marrow-Draining Thorns, 60 Spiked Corruption Cores, and 5 Hamster Cage Passes. Those totals give you a clear endpoint, but how quickly you reach it depends on which upgrades your team actually needs.
For a more efficient farming route, prioritize her Core Skill, promotion materials, and charged Basic Attack upgrades before committing resources to every standard skill. Use your available Notorious Hunt rewards for Sanguine Sweeper, collect Spiked Corruption Cores from Miasma Walker - Scorpse, and save Hamster Cage Passes for the skills you intend to finish. This approach lets you develop Nangong Yu's Stun and Anomaly support without spending your entire material stockpile on upgrades you may not need immediately.
