Hailey How to Get and Builds

To unlock Hailey in The First Descendant, you must finish Invasion Dungeons daily to research her. Read on to learn how to unlock Hailey, their best hard and normal mode builds, basic info, and skills!

How to Get Hailey

Finish Invasion Dungeons Daily

To get Hailey, you must farm Invasion Dungeons daily to obtain the components needed for her research. Keep in mind that farming Hailey will take a considerable amount of time since you will need to finish Hard Mode and have a maxed-out Descendant since Invasion Dungeons are solo missions.

Invasion Dungeon Guide

1.1.0b Hotfix Improved Hailey Drops

As of the recent 1.1.0b hotfix, all of Hailey's research components' monster drop rates have increased for their respective Infiltrate Operations! With this hotfix, you can now go with the option of repeatedly running these operations to farm for Hailey's parts.

To further improve efficiency, the 1.1.0 patch also increased the XP gain of most Infiltrate Operations, meaning that you can also passively level your Descendants while farming for Hailey!

Update 1.1.0 Patch Notes (August 29 Update)

Unlock Using the Research Institute

You can unlock Hailey through the Research Institute in Albion. Note that to acquire a Descendant using research, you need all the required items and gold to unlock this character.

Research Institute

Purchase Hailey Using Caliber

Alternatively, you can unlock Descendants by purchasing them in the Shop. This method only requires Caliber, an in-game currency that you can buy with real money. Purchasing Hailey in the Shop instantly unlocks the Descendant, allowing you to skip the item requirements and research time.

All Microtransactions

Best Hard Mode Hailey Build

Hailey Hard Mode Build Showcase

Note: This does not use the optimal reactor, meaning you can reach higher DPS!

Check out this 6-second clear for Hard Mode Pyromaniac using our Hard Mode Hailey build!

Best Hailey Modules (Hard Mode)

Long-Distance Maneuvering	Dangerous Ambush	Glacial Syncytium	Front Lines	Emergency Measures	Shot Focus
MP Conversion	Skill Concentration	Chill Specialist	Increased HP	Nimble Fingers

This Hailey build revolves around fully speccing into Zenith's high damage capabilities by using Piercing Light as a stat stick. With the help of Dangerous Ambush and stacking as much Skill Power as possible, this build deals about 25,000,000 damage in 6 seconds!

This Zenith build melts bosses without letting the opponent lay a hand on you as you reposition yourself in uncompromised positions! The other modules focus on Skill Criticals and Skill Cooldowns.

Alternative Modules for Mob Clearing

Module Change			Explanation
Dangerous Ambush	>	Maximize Conservation	Lessens Skill Cost at the cost of Skill Power Modifiers
Shot Focus	>	Multitalented	Replaces additional Firearm ATK for the ability to spam skills
Glacial Syncytium	>	Energy Collection	More MP Recovery over Chill Skill Power
Chill Specialist	>	Focus on Chill	Slightly gear more around skill cooldowns than Chill Skill Power

With Multitalented, additional MP Recovery, and more Skill Cooldown, Hailey will be a high-damage mob clearer that can still reliably down bosses with Cryo Rounds and Storm Snare. When you prefer using weapons, you can use Shot Focus instead of Multitalented!

The MP combo between Maximize Conservation and Energy Collection will allow you to use Cold Fury for near indefinite use. When paired with weapons such as the Thunder Cage, you can mow down hordes of enemies quickly!

Best Hailey Weapons and Modules (Hard Mode)

Weapon	Substat Priority
Piercing Light	• Bonus Firearm ATK Colossus (vs. Colossus) • Firearm Critical Hit Damage • Firearm ATK • Weak Point Damage

Zenith requires a stat-stick weapon that possesses an absurd amount of base damage, critical values, and weak point damage to scale off of. As of the latest update, Piercing Light possesses the highest base damage out of all the weapons in The First Descendant.

Best Piercing Light Modules

Weak Point Expansion	Concentration Stabilizer	Concentration Priority	Focus Fire	Action and Reaction
Weak Point Sight	Better Concentration	Expand Weapon Charge	Better Insight	Rifling Reinforcement

As Zenith also scales off of its stat-stick's modules, including Critical Hit Damage modifiers and Weak Point Expansion will allow you to reach about 3,000,000 from the sniper shots alone, plus the additional Chill damage follow-up if you hit weak points reliably!

Furthermore, you can also increase the amount of bullets you can fire off with Zenith by installing Expand Weapon Charge or Maximize Weight Balance, netting you the possibility of having 7-8 shots!

If you plan on running Solo Missions up until Swamp Walker, you can consider replacing Expand Weapon Charge for elemental modules since you aim on defeating them within 4-5 shots anyway!

Secondary Weapons

Hailey Recommended Secondary Weapons
Thunder Cage	Enduring Legacy

It is best to bring weapons with high base criticals like the Thunder Cage or Enduring Legacy while Zenith is on cooldown as secondary weapons.

With the absurd critical hit rate and penetration Cold Fury provides, you can help a weapon designed around criticals reach their maximum potential in terms of both damage and room clearing!

Best Hailey Equipment (Hard Mode)

Equipment	Substat Priority
Frozen Singularity Reactor	• Skill Critical Hit Damage • Additional Skill ATK When Attacking Colossus • Chill Power Boost Ratio • Skill Cooldown
Slayer Auxiliary Power	• Max HP • MP Recovery Out of Combat
Slayer Sensor	• Max MP • MP Recovery in Combat
Slayer Memory	• MP Recovery Multiplier • DEF
Slayer Processor	• Max Shield • Toxic Resistance

Note that External Components with set bonuses have fixed main stats.

Best Hailey Reactor

The best Reactor for Hailey is the Frozen Singularity Reactor, which boosts Chill and Singular, capitalizing on Storm Snare and especially Zenith's high power scaling. For substats, prioritize Additional Skill ATK When Attacking Colossus and Skill Critical Hit Damage to further hone in on boss melting.

While it is best to use a Frozen Singularity Reactor, you should prioritize a Frozen Reactor with a Piercing Light mounting optimization condition to always keep the additional skill power active.

Please refer to our Hard Mode rewards calendar to see where you can farm Frozen Singularity Reactors with High-Power rounds!

Best Hailey External Components Set

The best External Component set for Hailey is the Slayer set to get their 4-part set bonus, fully kitting out Hailey's capabilities by increasing Zenith's lethality with increased magazine size and skill power, while also slowing down Cold Fury's MP consumption!

For the substats, prioritize Max MP and MP Recovery to keep Cold Fury online while also allowing you to recover more MP with Zenith. Other than that, it is best to hone in on additional HP and DEF for increased survivability!

Hailey Playstyle Tips (Hard Mode)

Hailey Playstyle Tips
Always Keep Cold Fury Active Remember to Reposition Use Cryo Rounds While in Zenith Remember Distance Modifiers Utilize Storm Snare as Disengagement

Always Keep Cold Fury Active

Hailey's kit revolves around keeping her Cold Fury active while casting her other skills so that they consistently hit crits. Look to always keep Cold Fury online for extended periods by refreshing 15% of your MP reserves by hitting weak points with Zenith!

Remember to Reposition

While it is best to stay stationary and far away from enemy pressure to keep your Cold Fury stacks, there will come a time when you need to reposition to safety.

While you may lose your Cold Fury stacks this way, it is recommended to roll and cover more ground due to your slowed movement. Besides, the skill takes little to no time to stack up!

Use Cryo Rounds While in Zenith

Even if you are stationary while using Zenith, you can still cast Cryo Rounds! Using Cryo Rounds during Zenith becomes beneficial in multiple ways:

1. Safety: Cryo Rounds slow down opponents that are trying to close in on you, allowing you to snipe them down before they get to you.
2. DPS Increase: Cryo Rounds inflict a status that increases damage dealt to an inflicted enemy by 50%. Remember to use this as a primer for more damage.
3. Less Cooldowns: Since Cryo Rounds is a Dimension skill, using Cryo Rounds right before you end Zenith will significantly lessen its cooldown.

Remember Distance Modifiers

With Hailey's passive Safe Strategic Retreat, you will deal increased Weak Point damage the further you are away from an enemy. As a caveat, you will deal less damage the closer you are to your enemy.

Remember to check your passive icon to see the distance between your target for optimal damage. Hailey's weak point damage is at its peak when the passive icon is glowing blue but is affected negatively when labeled red!

Utilize Storm Snare as Disengagement

When you are getting swarmed by opponents, utilize Storm Snare to get enemy pressure away from you. While slow, this skill hinders enemy movement and deals enough damage to guarantee they stay dead in their tracks.

Best Normal Mode Hailey Build

Best Hailey Modules (Normal)

Best Hailey Modules
Front Lines	Skill Critical Hit Damage +X%, Skill Critical Hit Rate +X%
Shock Punch	Modifies the Charged Sub Attack. Use a Shock Punch to attack when performing a Charged Sub Attack. As the Enhancement Level increases, Max Module Capacity increases. (Currently +X)
Enlightenment	Max MP +X%
Energy Collection	MP Recovery +X%
Skill Concentration	Skill Critical Hit Damage +X%
Skill Insight	Skill Critical Hit Rate +X%
Singular Specialist	Singular Skill Power Modifier +X%
Chill Specialist	Chill Skill Power +X%
Increased DEF	DEF +X%
Increased HP	Max HP +X%
Nimble Fingers	Skill Cooldown -X%

Hailey, without the means of fully kitting out weapons, relies heavily on her Skill Power, Skill Criticals, and Skill Cooldown to actively use Cryo Rounds to clear mobs while using Zenith for boss encounters.

Since you can reliably restore your MP with Zenith, you can focus on Max MP and decreasing Skill Costs. This setup can help you maintain a 100% skill critical hit rate with Cold Fury!

Modules Guide: List of Modules

Best Hailey Weapon and Modules (Normal)

Weapon		Substat Priority
Guardian R4		• Explosive ATK • Bonus Firearm ATK (vs. Colossus) • Firearm Critical Hit Damage • Attribute Status Effect Trigger Rate
Best Modules for Guardian R4
Action and Reaction	Explosive ATK +X%, Recoil +X%.
Better Concentration	Firearm Critical Hit Damage +X%
Better Insight	Firearm Critical Hit Rate +X%
Rifling Reinforcement	Explosive ATK +X%

To fully maximize Zenith's damage potential early on, it is best to equip the Guardian R4 as it possesses the earliest highest base damage out of all the weapons you can obtain early on. It is still best to change to the highest-level Snipers or Launchers as you progress through the game.

As a secondary, you can also equip the Thunder Cage as another means to clear hordes of enemies in conjunction with Cryo Rounds. However, always remember to swap out to your Guardian R4 when you use Zenith!

Best Weapons Tier List

Best Hailey Reactor (Normal)

Reactor	Substat Priority
Frozen Singularity Reactor	・Skill Cooldown ・Chill Skill Power Boost Ratio

For the earlier stages of the game, equip any Frozen Singularity Reactor you get. It is best to funnel into Singular as Zenith will be your go-to damage dealer even without MP.

For the substats, look for Skill Cooldown and Chill Skill Power Boost Ratio to actively cast your skills whenever you need while adding more -oomph to their damage output!

Reactors Guide: List of Reactors

Best Hailey External Components (Normal)

Set	Set Effect
Glacial Set	2-Set Effect: ・Chill Skill Power Modifier +8.6% 4-Set Effect: ・Skill Cost -2.8% ・Firearm Critical Hit Rate +5.9%
Substat Priority
Auxiliary Power	・Max HP ・Fire Resistance ・Kuiper Shard Drop Rate Increase Modifier ・Module Drop Rate Increase Modifier
Sensor	・MP Recovery in Combat ・Max MP ・Consumable Drop Rate Increase Modifier ・Character EXP Gain
Memory	・DEF ・MP Recovery Modifier ・Electric Resistance ・Firearm Proficiency Gain Modifier
Processor	・Max Shield ・Item Acquisition Distance Increase Modifier ・Toxic Resistance ・Equipment Drop Rate Increase Modifier

Glacial is the best early external component set for Hailey since the set complements her skill set. Not only does it increase your Chill Skill Power Modifiers, but it also lessens Skill Costs and improves Firearm Critical Hit Rates!

The crucial stat here is less Skill Cost so you have more up-time to your Cold Fury! To get and complete the Glacial set, you must defeat the Dead Bride multiple times.

List of External Components

Hailey Basic Info & Stats

Hailey Basic Info
Hailey Glacial Marksman	Role	Burst DPS
	Element	Chill
Description
"A ranged DPS who uses an anti-material sniper cannon made of frozen moisture. She defeats her enemies with beams and bullets infused with chill."

Stats

Hailey Skills

Passive Skills

Skill	Type Effect
Safe Strategic Retreat	Proportional to the distance between the target and Hailey, the Weak Point Damage decreases the closer it is to the target and increases the further it is.

Active Skills

Skill	Type Effect
Cryo Round	Dimension Fires a Cryo Round at enemies in front to deal damage and inflict Cryo. Targets with Cryo stacks receive additional damage and lose 1 stack when hit by Hailey's firearm attack.
Storm Snare	Singular Unleashes a Chill Vortex around her, knocking back hit targets and firing a massive Freezing Beam in the direction of the crosshairs. Inflicts Cryo on targets hit based on Enemy AoE.
Cold Fury	Dimension Grants Hailey Cold Fury every second. The Cold Fury effect gradually decreases her Movement Speed, but greatly increases her Firearm and Skill Critical Hit Rates and Firearm Penetration. When Cold Fury reaches maximum stacks, Hailey becomes immune to Knockdown and gains an increase to her Firearm and Skill Critical Hit Damage. However, when using Roll or Grappling Hook, the stacks decrease.
Zenith	Singular Equips her unique Weapon. When hitting an enemy with the Unique Weapon, greatly increases Penetration and Firearm ATK and deals additional Chill skill damage. Recovers a portion of MP upon successfully attacking Weak Points. Partially decreases the Cooldown of the Unique Weapon skill when the skill ends depending on the number of fired bullets.

Hailey Exclusive Equipment

Piercing Spike

Too large to be called a gun and too accurate to be classified as a cannon, this one-off precision weapon was developed exclusively for Hailey and is a last tactical resort for when conventional attacks cannot subdue an enemy.

The specifications requested by HQ at the time of development required the creation of a weapon capable of piercing the armor of any enemy humanity was facing with a single strike.

Naturally, it was a nigh impossible request and seemed unlikely to be fulfilled in the future as well. But Hailey was like a walking ice core and the supercooled cryogenic Arche in her breath could instantly freeze any armor in existence and crush it into particles.

She already had the firepower and precision to achieve the requested specifications.

The First Descendant Related Guides

List of All Characters

All Base Characters

Ajax	Blair	Bunny
Enzo	Esiemo	Freyna
Gley	Hailey	Jayber
Kyle	Lepic	Luna
Sharen	Valby	Viessa
Yujin	-	-

All Ultimate Characters

Ultimate Ajax	Ultimate Bunny	Ultimate Gley
Ultimate Lepic	Ultimate Valby	Ultimate Viessa
Ultimate Freyna	-	-

Character Guides