Overload Gear (OL) - Intro | NIKKE | Prydwen Institute (2024)

The most basic stat that never goes wrong, ATK will undoubtedly benefit any Nikke, although it may be transparent and less preferred on some. In general, we will almost always recommend ATK as one of your targets when building DPS, but its rank in the scale of priorities may vary across units. Here is our thought process:

• If a unit's kit already possesses a high amount of ATK buff that has high uptime (like Scarlet's), a phenomenon called Dilution will dampen the efficacy of our ATK lines.
• For these units, Elemental DMG should be prioritized over ATK as they have a higher cost-return efficiency, even if they only work against a specific element. The same concept also applies in the other direction, but on average, Elemental DMG is rarely diluted.
• We like to consider both ATK & Elemental DMG as direct damage amplifications, but they do not enhance a unit's functional capabilities. Some units desire functional upgrades more than direct damage boosts.
• Hence, unless there are other lines to prioritize specifically for the Nikke in question (Charge Speed on Alice; Max Ammo for MGs; others), ATK will be placed on top of the hierarchy alongside Elemental DMG.

Another direct damage amplifier that multiplies the damage of your Nikke against the countered element by a certain percentage. It is generally superior to ATK because it establishes a higher cap and is less prone to dilution, but it is also less versatile. Here is our thought process:

• Elemental DMG is always good, 99% of the time, because nowadays ATK buffs are easily diluted.
• Elemental DMG allows your characters to "carry" you against their preferred bosses in Solo Raid and even against certain Nikke(s) in PvP.
• The damage increase is very noticeable, especially at higher levels. I mean, who can't see a 20%+ uptick in damage output?
• Higher if not the same priority as ATK when there is no drastic dilution. The only argument for prioritizing ATK is if the unit is present in a lot of content (like Alice) and is your only DPS, or if the element is seldom profitable (like in PvP because it is dominated by certain elements), but this advice is not rigid.

An indirect damage amplification and functional upgrade that boosts the uptime of a unit, which may or may not be significant. Less reloading = less downtime = less doing nothing. If they shoot more, they do more damage, right? Well, yeah, but the effect is less pronounced on some units.

• Perfect for units with long downtime(s), such as Scarlet, Modernia, Alice, etc. On the right units, they are way superior to ATK & Elemental DMG.
• Less effective on units who are not reliant on Normal Attacks for damage, such as Snow White or Maxwell, whose damage is contained within their Burst Skill. Still, some Max Ammo will still help with overall damage and Burst Generation (e.g. spamming Maxwell's Normal Attack to charge Burst).
• Thus, more shots mean less reload, which also mean higher Burst Generation potential. Particularly true with SR/RL with Manual Quick Scopes.
• Its value diminishes the more Max Ammo a unit has, but on certain units and weapon types, this point of diminishing return is never reached (as with most MGs).
• Its efficiency is also modulated by Reload Speed buffs in the team. Max Ammo improves DPS by increasing the uptime and in turn the uptime:downtime ratio, but Reload Speed does the same by minimizing the downtime. As a result, in tandem, they may reach the point of diminishing return much faster.
• Great for units who rely on "after X shots" mechanics to trigger their skills and may be necessary for some.
• Conversely, some units have mechanics antagonistic toward Max Ammo, such as "last bullet", in which case you must avoid Max Ammo at all costs and wash them away should they show up. This is especially true if they tamper with a unit too much (more apparent on SAnis, but not so much on Privaty because she is a support).

An enhancement tailored for weapons with poor accuracy, such as SMGs, SGs, and ARs to some extent. The goal of Hit Rate is pretty simple: helping you land more shots/core shots on the enemy and minimize "misses". Core shots provide a massive damage multiplier, so Hit Rate must be broken, right? No. The point of observable return is unreasonably high, and you need to stack a lot of Hit Rate before it manifests. This is because Hit Rate is a separate multiplier from accuracy. AR doesn't magically transform into a laser with 50% Hit Rate. Furthermore, about half of the weapon types, including AR, work just fine without additional Hit Rate.

• Reinforces units with poor accuracy and makes them more viable against smaller or farther enemies.
• Easier core hits mean greater profit from core hit buffs.
• More pellets/shots landed mean more consistent activation of specific skills.
• Some units may have a special interaction with Hit Rate (i.e. Modernia), which contribute to their compatibility. One is enough to permanently trigger S2, but it is not mandatory.
• Supplemental and corrective in nature but almost never a core aspect. Tends to be very low in priority unless there is a particular need or the composition qualifies for Hit Rate stacking.

Proportionally cuts down the time needed to charge an SR/RL to a specific percentage by X% seconds, relative to the default Charge Time. In other words, it can be thought of as increasing Fire Rate. A unit with 1.5s Charge Time and 40% Charge Speed will take 0.9s to fully charge. Its effect is more prominent the closer it is to 100%, at which point the resulting Charge Time is nearly zero.

• Only applicable to certain units; useless for others.
• The perceived Fire Rate increase slightly boosts the unit's DPS, which intensifies as the stat approaches 100%. Ideal with skillsets that already have high Charge Speed themselves.
• The increased Fire Rate also helps quicken RL timings in PvP, giving you an an edge.
• Charge Speed may also be used in PvP to regulate the chances of RL whiffing and target skipping in your or enemy's favor (double-edged sword).
• Charge Speed also interacts with most special abilities (i.e. Snow White's Burst Skill), potentially allowing them to benefit from time-limited buffs such as Liter's.
• Some units may have a special interaction with Charge Speed (i.e. Red Hood), which contribute to their compatibility.
• Some units have breakpoints that you can chase to enjoy an elevation in damage.
• Not as important as ATK & Elemental DMG, unless it is direly required for a unit to function (i.e. Alice).

A direct damage amplification that only works on SR/RL by additively increasing their default Charge Damage by the value shown, without increasing the Charge Time. A unit with 250% Charge Damage getting a 5% Charge Damage OL will have a maximum Charge Damage of 255%. Hence, we can view this as increasing the attack modifier of charged weapons.

• Only applicable to certain units; useless for others.
• As it internally interacts with modifiers, it doesn't get diluted by common buffs, but it still dilutes itself. It is less effective on units with already high enough base Charge Damage, let alone special abilities with over 1000% (e.g. Snow White's Burst Skill).
• Usually never a priority because the damage gain is tiny but otherwise an acceptable bonus line. Often overshadowed by Charge Speed, which is more universal and helps a lot with Arena.

A controversial buff because CRIT is underplayed in the damage formula, as it is often diluted by other major damage modifiers like Core Hit, Full Burst Bonus, and Damage Distance. However, when these other modifiers are absent, the untapped potential of CRIT awaits discovery. This is especially true with ShiftUp's recent tendency to conceal cores for over half the fight.

• Dependent on Critical Damage stat to bring impact. Not many compositions feature CRIT to a healthy level.
• Even then, it is minimal unless the other major modifiers are absent, which is almost always the case with shotguns (because their poor accuracy doesn't allow for many core hits) or special attacks that are usually aimed somewhere off core (such as Snow White's Burst Skill being used to overkill parts).
• Very low in priority because the current meta is predominantly occupied by accurate weapons. However, if SGs and SMGs are to make their comeback, CRIT will be favorable to them.
• We usually aim for Critical Rate OL when a unit's kit is saturated with Critical Damage and vice versa.

Again, another sad buff that doesn't deserve our heartless treatment.

• Dependent on Critical Rate stat to bring impact.
• Similar characteristics and consequences.
• Choose this instead of its sibling if a unit already has too much Critical Rate.

Worthless because DEF is underplayed in the damage formula. Can be used to redirect attacks that target units of the highest/lowest DEF both in PvE and PvP, but there is no real usage that would warrant or justify keeping this.

• A pitfall trap whose only purpose is to annoy you and reduce your chance of obtaining good rolls.
• I guess random appearances of DEF can boost your CP?