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Ellen Joe has earned a reputation as one of Zenless Zone Zero’s strongest Ice DPS Agents thanks to her Flash Freeze mechanic and high sustained damage when built correctly. Below is a complete guide to her gear, stat priorities, and ideal teams so you can maximize her damage output in Hollow Raiding or regular zones.

Role and Playstyle

Ellen Joe is an S-Rank Ice Attack Agent from Victoria Housekeeping Co. who excels as a main DPS. Her kit revolves around building Flash Freeze Charges via Dash and EX Special attacks and then spending them with empowered Basic Attacks for massive Ice damage. Ellen performs especially well during Stun or Freeze windows when her damage spikes.

Best W-Engines (Weapons)

Best in Slot (Signature)

• Deep Sea Visitor (Signature W-Engine)
  Effect: Increases Ice DMG by a substantial amount. When hitting enemies with Basic Attacks, your CRIT Rate increases for a duration. When you deal Ice DMG with Dash Attacks, your CRIT Rate increases even more.
  This weapon is considered Ellen’s best build choice because it boosts her Ice damage and greatly improves her crit consistency, perfect for her attack-heavy playstyle.

Strong Alternatives

If you do not have Deep Sea Visitor, these options are excellent:

• The Brimstone
  Offers an Attack bonus and scales well with Ellen’s fast build-up playstyle.
• Starlight Engine (F2P Best Pick)
  A craftable or accessible engine that provides solid Attack boosts and is recommended if you cannot get premium weapons.
• Street Superstar
  Increases Attack and is a good early or budget option if other premium engines are unavailable.

Best Drive Disc Sets

Drive Discs are a huge part of Ellen’s DPS scaling. The goal is to boost Crit Rate/DMG, Attack, and Ice damage.

Top Recommended Disc Set

• 4-Piece Woodpecker Electro + 2-Piece Polar Metal
  This combination strikes a balance of attack buff, increased CRIT performance, and Ice damage amplification. Woodpecker Electro raises your CRIT Rate while Polar Metal enhances both basic and dash attacks and gains bonuses when Freeze or Shatter occur.

Alternative Disc Sets

• 4-Piece Polar Metal + 2-Piece Woodpecker Electro
  This swap still maintains strong Ice efficacy and crit synergy when Freeze and Shatter are triggered.
• 4-Piece Woodpecker + 2-Piece Puffer Electro
  Puffer Electro can help increase penetration, which is useful if enemy resistances are high or if your Ice damage is already saturated.

Stat Priorities for Disc Drives

When rolling Disc Drive main stats, focus on the following:

• Disc Slot 4: CRIT Rate or CRIT Damage
• Disc Slot 5: Ice Damage Bonus or Attack Percentage
• Disc Slot 6: Attack Percentage or PEN Ratio depending on team build

Substat Priority:

1. CRIT Rate
2. CRIT Damage
3. Attack Percentage
4. PEN Ratio

High crit ratios and crit damage are critical for Ellen because her kit amplifies damage dramatically when she lands critical hits consistently.

Best Bangboo Choices

Bangboo selection can further enhance Ellen’s performance:

• Sharkboo: Increases Ice damage and overall offensive stats useful for a DPS build.
• Penguinboo or Butler: Provide utility and energy regeneration which help maintain Ellen’s uptime on the field.

Team Compositions That Maximize Ellen Joe

Ellen deals the greatest damage when supported by units that provide Stun, Freeze control, buffs, or Penetration.

Mono-Ice Core Team

• Ellen Joe (Main DPS)
• Von Lycaon (Stun)
• Soukaku (Support Buffer)

Lycaon’s stun and resistance-shredding complements Ellen’s Ice damage, while Soukaku provides strong Attack buffs to boost overall team damage.

Stun Oriented Team

• Ellen Joe (Main DPS)
• Caesar (Stunner with Defense Buffs)
• Soukaku (Support)

This team benefits from frequent stuns to open damage windows, allowing Ellen to unleash powerful attacks without interruption.

F2P Friendly Team

• Ellen Joe
• Any Stun Agent (Lycaon, Caesar, or Lighter)
• Support with ATK buffs or energy regen

Even without premium lineup units, Ellen will still shine when she gets regular stun windows and supportive buffs to sustain uptime.

Combat Tips for Maximum Output

Ellen’s damage peaks when she uses her Flash Freeze mechanic effectively:

• Use Dash Attacks and EX Specials to charge Flash Freeze quickly.
• Maintain Freeze or Stun status on enemies to boost Ice damage and trigger Shatter reactions.
• Time her Empowered Basic Attacks after building charges for optimal burst.

Critical performance improves dramatically with crit rate and crit damage builds, so aim for around 70%+ crit rate in stats and 130-150% crit damage if possible. This ensures high damage consistency.

Final Thoughts

When built correctly, Ellen Joe dominates with some of the highest Ice DPS in Zenless Zone Zero. Her signature Deep Sea Visitor W-Engine, paired with a Woodpecker Electro + Polar Metal Disc Drive setup, will let her shine in most content. Strategic team compositions, especially ones with stunners like Lycaon and buffers like Soukaku or Caesar, will allow Ellen to perform at her best and tip the balance in Hollow Zero challenges and high-end encounters.

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