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Zenless Zone Zero (ZZZ)
Critical Node Guide for Version 2.6
▶︎ Follow Game8's ZZZ Twitter for news & guides
☆ New: Tier List Maker & Co-Op Board!
★ 2.6 Phase 1: Sunna & Yixuan
☆ 2.6 Phase 2: Aria & Yuzuha
★ Tier Lists: Agents | W-Engines | Bangboos | Teams
☆ Redeem Codes for free Polychromes!
Critical Node is the second node of Shiyu Defense in Zenless Zone Zero (ZZZ) that consists of seven stages. Check out when it resets, all the frontier guides, the best characters for each stage, and all the rewards here!
| Endgame Guides | |
|---|---|
 Shiyu Defense |
 Deadly Assault |
List of Contents
Critical Node Latest News
Restructuring and Updated Fifth Node
Critical Node of Shiyu Defense updated their stage structure in Version 2.5, reducing the frontiers from 7 to 5.
In this new Critical Node mode, the Fifth Frontier is upgraded. In order to gain higher rankings, Proxies will now have to defeat waves upon waves of enemies as fast and as much as possible, which means a high DMG output is key to winning.
The Upgraded Fifth Frontier
In the upgraded Fifth Frontier, Proxies will be required to complete 3 different stages, each with their own unique enemy lineups and bosses.
The new scoring parameter is based on DMG dealt, so having a higher DMG output is your key to a higher ranking. The higher your DMG output, the faster you can annihilate waves of enemies. The more waves you defeat, the higher your score will be.
Critical Node Reset Date and Countdown
Critical Node Resets on February 6
| Critical Node Reset Date and Countdown |
|---|
| February 20, 2026 |
Critical Node resets every other Friday. This resets all your progress in Critical Node so that you will be able to collect rewards again upon completion.
This Phase of Critical Node will reset on February 20, 2026.
Critical Node Stage Effects
Current Stage Effect
| Frontier Info | |
|---|---|
|
• Agent CRIT DMG increases by 20%. • While in Ether Veil, Agent Physical DMG increases by 15%, and attacks ignore 10% of enemy's DEF. • Agent Electric DMG increases by 15%. • Agent Basic Attack, EX Special Attack, and Ultimate deal 20% increased DMG and ignore 10% of enemy AII-DMG RES on hit. • Agent Fire DMG increases by 20% and Agent ATK increases by 10%. • The Agent gains an additional 40 initial Energy and deals 40% bonus CRIT DMG. |
|
| Next Reset | 02/20/2026 - 04:00 |
In response to Critical Node's reset time, its Stage Effects also change in turn. This current Stage Effect for Critical Node is applied to all of its Frontiers.
Future Effects and Phases
| Phase | Effects |
|---|---|
| II 02/20 |
While in an Ether Veil, the Agent's ATK increases by 25% and CRIT DMG increases by 20%. When an Agent hits enemies, ignore 10% of their Physical RES. Agent's Ice DMG increases by 20%, Basic Attack DMG increases by 40%. After an Agent uses an EX Special Attack, the Agent's Ice DMG additionally increases by 20% for 15s. Repeated triggers reset the duration. Agent Max HP increases by 15%, Fire DMG and Ether DMG increase by 20%. After the Agent activates their Ultimate, Sheer DMG increases by 15% for 20s. Repeated triggers reset the duration. |
| III 03/06 |
Agent Physical DMG and Electric DMG increase by 15%, CRIT DMG increases by 20%. When an Agent with Attack specialty lands a critical hit on an enemy, enemy DEF is reduced by 10% for 5s. Repeated triggers reset the duration. Agent Sheer DMG increases by 10%. While in Ether Veil, Agent Sheer DMG further increases by 15%, and attacks ignore 15% of enemy All-DMG RES on hit. Agent Ether DMG increases by 20%. While in Ether Veil, Agent ATK increases by 30%, and attacks ignore 10% of enemy Ether DMG RES. |
| IV 03/20 |
Agent ATK increases by 30%, CRIT DMG increases by 15%. Enemies' Stun DMG Multiplier increases by 20%. Agent Ether DMG increases by 20%. After inflicting Attribute Anomaly on an enemy, the Agent restores 20 Energy and all squad members' ATK increases by 35% for 15s. Repeated triggers reset the duration. This effect can trigger once every 20s. Agent Ice and Ether DMG increase by 15%. While Agents are in an Ether Veil, CRIT DMG increases by 40% and Sheer DMG increases by 20%. These buffs are removed when exiting Ether Veil. |
How to Unlock Critical Node
Clear Stable Node: Tenth Frontier
Critical Node is unlocked after clearing Stable Node: Tenth Frontier in Shiyu Defense.
Shiyu Defense 11
Critical Node First Frontier Details
| Objectives | 
- More than 300s remaining
- More than 180s remaining
- Defeat all enemies |
|---|---|
| Best Attributes | 1st Half: 2nd Half: |
| Enemies | 1st Half: 2nd Half: |
Shiyu Defense 11 Critical Node Guide
Critical Node First Frontier Best Characters
| First Half Teams | Second Half Teams |
|---|---|
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Other Recommended Characters
| 1st Half | 
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| 2nd Half | 
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Shiyu Defense 12
Critical Node Second Frontier Details
| Objectives |
- More than 300s remaining
- More than 180s remaining
- Defeat all enemies |
|---|---|
| Best Attributes | 1st Half: 2nd Half: |
| Enemies | 1st Half: 2nd Half: |
Shiyu Defense 12 Critical Node Guide
Critical Node Second Frontier Best Characters
| First Half Teams | Second Half Teams |
|---|---|
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Other Recommended Characters
| 1st Half |
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| 2nd Half | 
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Shiyu Defense 13
Critical Node Third Frontier Details
| Objectives |
- More than 300s remaining
- More than 180s remaining
- Defeat all enemies |
|---|---|
| Best Attributes | 1st Half: 2nd Half: |
| Enemies | 1st Half: 2nd Half: |
Shiyu Defense 13 Critical Node Guide
Critical Node Third Frontier Best Characters
| First Half Teams | Second Half Teams |
|---|---|
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Other Recommended Characters
| 1st Half |
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| 2nd Half |
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Shiyu Defense 14
Critical Node Fourth Frontier Details
| Objectives |
- More than 300s remaining
- More than 180s remaining
- Defeat all enemies |
|---|---|
| Best Attributes | 1st Half: 2nd Half: |
| Enemies | 1st Half: 2nd Half: |
Shiyu Defense 14 Critical Node Guide
Critical Node Fourth Frontier Best Characters
| First Half Teams | Second Half Teams |
|---|---|
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Other Recommended Characters
| 1st Half |
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| 2nd Half |
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Shiyu Defense 15
Critical Node Fifth Frontier Details
| Challenge Target |  - Get an S-rating in all rooms and achieve a total score of 100,000. - Get an S-rating in all rooms - Get an A-rating in all rooms - Get a B-rating in all rooms |
|---|---|
| Objectives Per Room | - Reach 25000 points for the current room- Reach 18000 points for the current room- Reach 8000 points for the current room |
| Best Attributes | Room 1: Room 2: Room 3: |
| Enemies | Room 1: Room 2: Room 3: |
Shiyu Defense 15 Critical Node Guide
Critical Node Fifth Frontier Best Characters
| Room 1 | Room 2 | Room 3 |
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Critical Node Rewards
List of Critical Node Rewards
| Frontiers | Rewards |
|---|---|
| 1st |  Polychrome
x150 Denny
x45,000 |
| 2nd | Polychrome
x150 Denny
x45,000 |
| 3rd | Polychrome
x150 Denny
x45,000 |
| 4th | Polychrome
x150 Denny
x45,000 |
| 5th | Polychrome
x240 Denny
x45,000 |
| Total | Polychrome
x740 Denny
x315,000 |
What is Critical Node?
Shiyu Defense Stages
Critical Node is the second node you will play through in Shiyu Defense. These consist of seven stages that refresh on a regular basis, and you can challenge to collect up to 720 Polychromes.
Zenless Zone Zero Related Guides
Stable Node Guides
| All Stable Node Stages | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frontier 1 | Frontier 2 | Frontier 3 | Frontier 4 | Frontier 5 |
| Frontier 6 | Frontier 7 | Frontier 8 | Frontier 9 | Frontier 10 |
Disputed Node Guides
| All Disputed Node Stages | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Frontier 1 | Frontier 2 | Frontier 3 | Frontier 4 |
| Frontier 5 | Frontier 6 | Frontier 7 | Frontier 8 |
Critical Node Guides
| All Critical Node Stages | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frontier 1 | Frontier 2 | Frontier 3 | ||
| Frontier 4 | Frontier 5 | |||
Ambush Node Guides
| All Ambush Node Stages | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frontier 1 | Frontier 2 | Frontier 3 | ||
| Frontier 4 | Frontier 5 | |||
Author
Critical Node Guide for Version 2.6
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Update for the new reset please