Last updated: 27/May/2026

Best guide and build for Ellen from ZZZ (Zenless Zone Zero). Ellen is an
rank character with the Ice attribute who belongs to the
Attack Specialty and who is part of the
Victoria Housekeeping Co. faction.
Less Is More, Simple Is Key. Complexity has no place here. Just keep everything simple. Work Smart and Rest More. Take breaks at the right time... to minimize the annoyance of working. Work With Focus, Prevail With Caution. Whether she takes it too seriously or not seriously enough, it's her enemy who ends up suffering from it. Unleash Sweet Delight, Unwrap and Indulge. Savoring the lollipop and concealing her true thoughts.
Ellen has at least one video guide available, so if you prefer this sort of medium to learn more about a character, check it out:
Last review update
Patch 2.5
Last build update
Patch 2.5
Last teams update
Patch 2.5
Last profile update*
27/May/2026
*Profile update means smaller edits to disk drives, stats or other things that don't require new calculations.
To learn more about Ellen check the sections below. Use the tabs to quickly switch to the kind of information you're looking for.
Profile
Core Passive Sharp-Toothed
When Ellen launches a Charged Scissor strike during Dash Attack: Arctic Ambush, or consumes Flash Freeze Charge to activate Basic Attack: Flash Freeze Trimming, the skill's CRIT DMG increases by 50%.
The above effect also applies to Chain Attacks, Ultimates, Basic Attack: Icy Blade, and Basic Attack: Glacial Blade Wave.
CRIT Rate 0
BASE ATK: 0
Additional Ability Rising Storm
When another character in your squad is a Stun character or shares the same Attribute or Faction:
When Ellen deals Ice DMG, subsequent Ice DMG increases by 3% for 10s. This effect can stack up to 10 times, and repeated triggers reset the duration.
Potential Awakening: Permafrost Zone
Basic Attack: Saw Teeth Trimming
Basic Attack: Flash Freeze Trimming
Basic Attack: Glacial Blade Wave
Basic Attack: Icy Blade
Dodge: Vortex
Dash: Roaming Hunt
Flash Freeze
Dash Attack: Arctic Ambush
Dash Attack: Monstrous Wave
Dash Attack: Cold Snap
Dodge Counter: Reef Rock
Special Attack: Drift
EX Special Attack: Tail Swipe
EX Special Attack: Sharknami
Chain Attack: Avalanche
Ultimate: Endless Winter
Assist Follow-Up: Shark Cruiser
Defensive Assist: Wavefront Impact
Quick Assist: Shark Sentinel
Glacial Omen
Mindscape 1
Arctic Ocean Predator
Mindscape 2
Overtime-Intolerant
Mindscape 3
Endless Hoarfrost
Mindscape 4
Adequate Sleep
Mindscape 5
The Feast Begins
Mindscape 6
Ellen Stats at level 60 (including Core passive bonuses).
Ellen images aren't available yet. They will be added soon!
Review
This tier list assesses Agents (characters) based on their combat potential in Zenless Zone Zero's most demanding contents - Deadly Assault (DA) and Shiyu Defense (SD). Please keep in mind Zenless Zone Zero is a skill-based game and each character has a different playstyle, difficulty level and even special tricks and combos. Zenless Zone Zero is also a team based game and it's only by combining both these factors to the highest level a character can reach optimal performance.
High Ice damage output which is easy to access;
Cohesive kit with high movement speed, self-buffs, invulnerability and parry mechanics. Easy to adapt to several kinds of enemies;
Wide AoE capabilities, small enemy grouping capabilities and increased damage against larger targets — versatile to where she’s capable of handling all kinds of situations.
On-fielder playstyle with lots of different combos may make her harder to pilot than a lot of other DPS Agents;
Notably lengthy Chain Attack, which may cause some issues with ensuring all of her key abilities fit during a single Stun window.
Ellen is an S-Rank Ice Combat Agent specializing in delivering high amounts of pure Ice damage through and outside of her burst rotation, as she enjoys being played on-field. She can handle groups of small enemies and bosses alike and is characterized by her versatility in playstyle.
Ellen boasts high mobility, thanks to her signature “Roaming” state accessed via double-tapping or holding Dodge, which positions her as one of the fastest characters in the game. Her gameplay is centered around managing Flash Freeze charges, a resource exclusive to her, which powers her multiple Enhanced Basic Attacks.
Ellen’s Basic Attack is a 3-hit combo integral to both her standard and burst rotations. It features two variants: a standard form dealing Physical damage (which will be mostly unused) and an enhanced form consuming Flash Freeze charges to deal Ice damage instead (requiring 3 Flash Freeze for a full 3-hit combo). In both forms, the first and second strikes are swift and relatively weak, while the third strike is a lengthier attack that can be extended further with continuous tapping. The third hit deals the majority of the combo's damage and triggers Ellen's teleportation behind her current or a new target if the original is eliminated or moves.
After this attack, Ellen automatically casts an additional wave of Ice DMG called “Icy Blade”. There are several ways to activate it which include:
Using her Enhanced Basic Attack 3;
Using her second EX Special;
Using her Dodge Counter;
Using her Assist Follow-Up.
Icy Blade is an extra attack automatically activated at the cost of a little bit of time, and it improves Ellen’s damage by a ton, as it deals more up to 2 or 3 instances against Medium and Large enemies (1 low-power hit against Small enemies). It has a wide AoE and also gives her the “Quick Charge” buff, significantly speeding up her next Charged Arctic Ambush from roughly 2 seconds to about 1.5 seconds. Let’s explain what that is:
Ellen possesses a standard Dodge, Dodge Counter, and Dash attacks common among characters. Unique to her is the ability to hold down her Dodge to enter a special sprinting state known as the Roaming State. This state allows her to remain indefinitely sprinting and transforms her standard Basic Attack into Arctic Ambush, a critical component of her kit. Activating Arctic Ambush exits the Roaming State, delivering a chopping attack with her scissors that generates 1 Flash Freeze charge on hit. Alternatively, holding the Basic Attack button charges Arctic Ambush, increasing its damage and generating 3 Flash Freeze charges (ideal for executing a full Enhanced Basic Attack combo). Charging Arctic Ambush costs Ellen considerable field time, but executing a Perfect Dodge grants her the "Quick Charge" buff mentioned prior as well. Additionally, it can act as a form of parry. If Ellen is hit by an enemy, the attack is instantly cast while providing the full 3 Flash Freeze charges, negating any field time cost with proper timing. Add that on top of the fact that Ellen is completely invulnerable for a brief period after exiting the Roaming state, and you have a parry mechanic similar in several ways to Yixuan’s charged EX special.
Additionally, after using her Basic Attack 3, if Ellen has Flash Freeze charges remaining, she can use up to 2 of them to cast a special Basic Attack called “Glacial Blade Wave” which is a big burst of Ice DMG and can transition right back into Basic Attack 3, allowing for the potential to alternate between the two attacks for really high damage. Note however that using this ability does not trigger Icy Blade. Other ways to trigger Glacial Blade Wave (note Ellen must have Flash Freeze charges in any situation) include:
After a Quick Assist;
After a Charged Scissor Strike;
After a Dodge Counter.
Ellen’s Defensive Assist, Assist Follow-Up, and Quick Assist are standard attacks among melee characters, dealing Ice damage and/or inflicting Daze. Notably, when she performs a Quick Assist, she also gains the "Quick Charge" effect mentioned before, in addition to the usual Perfect Dodge bonus.
Ellen possesses 2 EX Specials (her regular Special will be unused). The first EX Special can be activated when having sufficient energy, dealing Ice damage ahead of her, generating 1 Flash Freeze charge, and allowing an immediate Follow-Up with the third Basic Attack of her Basic Attack combo. This sequence allows Ellen to quickly deal damage, generate a Charge, and then immediately use it via her powerful Basic 3 automatically followed up by Icy Blade, making for a really good burst of damage. Ellen’s second EX functions similarly but with increased damage, requiring immediate use after her first EX. This choice gives Ellen flexibility: she can opt for EX1 followed by a Basic 3 and 1 Icy Blade or EX1 + EX2 and 1 Icy Blade followed by a Glacial Blade Wave.
Ellen’s Chain Attack and Ultimate deliver substantial Ice damage and Daze. However, her Chain Attack requires more time to execute compared to other characters, something to take note of as it may take up precious Stun window times.
Ellen’s Core Passive is very strong, making it a nice incentive to approach 100% CRIT Rate without damaging her other stats. This passive grants up to 100% Crit damage to Arctic Assault, all her Flash Freeze-Enhanced attacks (including Icy Blade, Glacial Blade Wave and Basic Attacks), Chain Attacks, Ultimates – you name it. Her Additional Ability is also a good boost and is really easy to activate thanks to its simple activation requirements. It grants a buff increasing her Ice damage by 3% each time she deals any Ice damage, stacking up to 10 times for 10 seconds. This ability is easily maintained, effectively providing a consistent 30% boost to Ice damage.
Ellen’s meta relevancy has seen a new surge in 2.0 thanks to her revamped kit, restoring a good chunk of the dominance she had during the game’s launch period. Now usable with new, more powerful teammates such as Lighter and Astra Yao on top of her revamped kit, she’s able to clear endgame content much better than she used to, and her damage potential has only reached new heights despite her build being completely unchanged from before. If you already have Ellen built and benched her in favour of more powerful DPS Agents, think again as her damage output is back and it’s way more noticeable than ever. Despite requiring a new playstyle due to her revisited combos, it’s definitely worth the effort learning.
In conclusion, Ellen used to be a very potent damage dealer in version 1.0, and thanks to her revamped kit in version 2.0, she’s back to that state once again. She’s worth considering if you wish to acquire a good Ice Attack Agent and an Agent like Miyabi doesn’t suit you or isn’t available. Thanks to her synergy with free characters and standard banner characters like Lycaon and Soukaku, building a strong team for Ellen couldn’t be easier and you’ll get great performance out of her that way.
Ellen gets a lot of value from on-fielding, being able to dish out good damage and being able to exploit Perfect Dodges to speed up her Flash Freeze Charge generation with the Quick Charge effect.
Her low EX Special cost makes it possible to slot in an occasional cast for the B3 shortcut, and anytime Icy Blade is used it’s an opportunity to briefly swap out to other characters for buffs/debuffs/Daze. Even if Ellen does benefit from being the active character, it is far from the focus, and working so as to not under or overshoot Ice Anomaly build-up can help if bosses are Freezeable.
As stun approaches, be more conservative with Energy spend, as being able to get a Tail Swipe into Sharknami string, then still be able to generate enough Energy mid-stun to do another Tail Swipe into B3 is ideal (Support Ultimates can help with this).
Being at around 80 - 100 Energy depending on the team and available Ultimates is ideal.
Which combo is used depends on the team. For example:
Dialyn Ultimate Conversion
Ellen Ultimate
Nicole Chain Attack
Ellen Chain Attack
EB1
Ellen Ultimate
Swap to Nicole for her Ultimate
Quick Assist to Ellen (Dash Cancel)
EX Special: Tail Swipe
EX Special: Sharknami
Swap to Nicole for her EX Special
Icy Blade
Quick Assist to Ellen (Dash Cancel)
EX Special: Tail Swipe
EB3
Icy Blade
EX Special: Tail Swipe
EX Special: Sharknami
Swap to Lighter for a Chain trigger
Icy Blade
Ellen Chain Attack
Cancel
EB1
EB2
EB3
Icy Blade
Swap to Lighter for Chain trigger
Ellen Chain
EX Special: Tail Swipe
EB3
Icy Blade
Ellen Ultimate
Try to maintain any relevant W-Engine buffs where applicable (such as Deep Sea visitor, with Basics in combos to refresh stacks) and make use of Freeze to extend stun durations.
From there, it’s back to building up resources again while doing as much damage as possible between stuns without sacrificing on set-ups and other Agents’ contribution to a fight.
Build and teams
The W-Engines are listed in order of priority. Sometimes the percentages appearing near them won't reflect their performance as pure damage or Stun output isn't the only thing we're looking at - the utility of the W-Engine might be more important than the calculations imply.
The W-Engine calculations below are team-buffed calculations and here's the team we used for them:
100.00%
99.01%
92.75%
91.68%
84.42%
77.12%
100.00%
Puffer is a particularly strong set, but one that's reliant on a specific teammate: Dialyn. Its Combat Attack bonuses are comparable to Woodpecker's 2-stack, with the added bonus of providing Ultimate DMG %, but its 12s duration meant it never lasted for a whole stun period, and getting enough Decibels for Ultimates every stun was often unsustainable. If Dialyn is present though, this fixes both problems, as it allows for both double Ultimate rotations (so full uptime for burst) and Ultimates in every stun, leading to it outperforming Woodpecker when it otherwise would fall short.
Best combined with your choice of 2-PC Set:
Woodpecker Electro
Polar Metal
Branch & Blade Song
Astral Voice
Hormone Punk
99.35%
As Ellen's Basic Attack burst is interspersed with EX Specials, it has high stack uptime, providing a consistent and high value Combat Attack boost. Unfortunately, maintaing 3 stacks out of stun can lead to sub-optimal rotation decisions, as needing to Dodge Counter for stacks takes away time better spent with Dash or Basic Attacks. It is also difficult to maintain 2 stack uptime in stun, potentially sacrificing use of Sharknami to conserve Energy to refresh the EX Special stacks, or leading to less effective combos in certain teams (such as with Astra). Given its generally decent uptime though, it is still most likely to be her best option when its bonuses are worked around.
Best combined with your choice of 2-PC Set:
Puffer Electro
Polar Metal
Branch & Blade Song
Astral Voice
Hormone Punk
93.24%
Ellen needs to frequently use her Dash Attack to build charges and Shadow Harmony provides hefty buffs upon using Dash Attacks. It's no wonder then that it's a usable set on her, with relatively consistent Combat ATK % and CRIT Rate increases making it a decent option. Unfortunately, the lacklustre 2-piece effect lowers its value, and as Ellen has relatively low cost EX Specials, Woodpecker is almost certain to do better with less demanding buff management needs when in stun. Shadow Harmony can be a fair alternative if other sets aren't available, but still falls short of being all that great.
Best combined with your choice of 2-PC Set:
Puffer Electro
Woodpecker Electro
Branch & Blade Song
Astral Voice
Hormone Punk
Substats: CRIT DMG >= CRIT Rate > ATK% > PEN = ATK
ATK: 2600 - 3000+
HP: 9500+
DEF: 780+
CRIT RATE: 90 - 100%
CRIT DMG: 120% - 180%+
Chain Attack
Special Attack
Basic Attack
Dodge
Assist
Teams & Synergy
Below we list only the most important synergies for Ellen. The character can work with others if you know what to do and how to use them.
Dialyn - With Ellen's Potential allowing for her Chain Attacks and Ultimates to benefit from her Core Passive, it's no wonder that getting an extra Ultimate helps with damage. Dialyn also leads to setups where Ellen can both get an Ultimate from her conversion and still land a Chain Attack in full, which when combined with the 2 second stun duration extension, makes for incredibly hard-hitting combos. As Dialyn does not demand much field time, she enables fast Daze build without taking away from Ellen's out of stun damage and resource generation, being an even better option than Lighter for the Stunner slot.
Lighter
Trigger
Ju Fufu
Lycaon - These 4 Stun options each have their pros and cons, typically with Lighter coming out on top as the best choice for Ellen (outside of Dialyn). This is because he sports massive boosts to Ice DMG, Ice RES shred and has amazing Daze infliction as well as a Stun window extension which allows Ellen's damage to reach its true potential. Lycaon also provides Ice RES shred and a Stun DMG Multiplier increase at the cost of inflicting slower Daze. Trigger, much like Lycaon, can increase the Stun DMG multiplier of enemies, all that while dealing damage and Daze off-field, and Ellen can make good use of the extra field time. Ju Fufu also takes up little field time while focusing on buffing CRIT DMG, Ultimate and Chain Attack DMG. These 4 options are very competitive, Lighter being the best one by far.
Astra Yao
Yuzuha
Nicole - These 3 generalist Support units are capable of servicing as the Support to any team in the game. Astra Yao provides Quick Assists, extra Chain Attacks, healing, super low field time, ATK, DMG and CRIT DMG buffs which makes her the overall best choice in almost all cases. Yuzuha is the ultimate Anomaly buffer who also has awesome ATK and DMG% buffs applicable to any Agent as well, giving her strong general use potential; Nicole provides the sought-after DEF Shred and CRIT Rate at M6 which makes her competitive. They can work with any team in the game to great effect.
Soukaku - Soukaku has a particular synergy with Ellen since both are of the Ice attribute. This makes both able to activate each other's Additional Abilities, and Soukaku can enjoy reducing Ice RES, increasing Ice DMG and increasing the ATK of Ellen all at once to greatly improve her damage potential, while applying tons of extra Anomaly to aid Ellen in freezing targets to extend Stun windows. She isn't stronger than premium options like Astra Yao but remains a very strong Support choice, particularly for F2P players.
Sunna - Ellen and Sunna can work quite well, owing both to the Ellen's tendency to on-field (leading to consistent Cat's Gaze triggers), as well as Sunna's buffs not being highly saturated. Ellen has a lot of CRIT DMG, which diminishes the value of other premium supports like Astra, so the raw Attack value and the Stun DMG Multiplier Sunna provides go a long way, all the while contributing a decent amount of Daze and damage to the comp.This section lists most popular teams featuring Ellen in the current phase of Shiyu Defense.
There are no teams featuring Ellen who have cleared Shiyu Defense in the current cycle.
This section lists most popular teams featuring Ellen in the current phase of Deadly Assault.
There are no teams featuring Ellen who have cleared Deadly Assault in the current cycle.
Calculations
Don't use the damage output calculations as an indication on who is worth pulling or investing as those are just simulations and in day-to-day gameplay there's a lot variables and also the skill of the player is important. As usual, don't compare the numbers between characters.
ZZZ has changed a lot from 1.0 - many new mechanics, enemies characters have been introduced and biggest of all the game has a new competitive endgame mode Deadly Assault. Deadly Assault is based around dealing as much damage as possible in 180 seconds, because of this we're changing our calculation style away from a focus on burst to instead focus on extended fights over 3 minutes (180s). Also, many Mindscapes, Disc Drive and W-engine calculations can meaningfully change when factoring in the buffs of an Agents best team, for this reason we're also adding a new feature, allowing you to see damage output with one of the agents best teams buffs factored in.
The W-Engine calculations below are team-buffed calculations and here's the team we used for them:
Shiyu Defense / Deadly Assault
This section contains information about Ellen performance in the latest Shiyu Defense and Deadly Assault cycles. The page will be automatically updated every patch once enough data is gathered.
If you want to share your clear information with us, you simply need to fill the form below and provide us with your UID and make your Hoyo profile public - we will automatically parse the Shiyu Defense clear information from your profile after that!
Shiyu Defense Stats FormCharacters are ranked with appearance rate, which is how often a character was used in Shiyu Defense by the players who we have scanned, regardless of whether they own the character or not. Ownership rate currently cannot be obtained.
Characters are ranked with appearance rate, which is how often a character was used in Deadly Assault by the players who we have scanned, regardless of whether they own the character or not. Ownership rate currently cannot be obtained.
This section lists the characters that were most commonly paired with Ellen in the current phase of Shiyu Defense.
This section lists the characters that were most commonly paired with Ellen in the current phase of Deadly Assault.