Full Burst

Burst Gauge Generation

We have confirmed that ALL units generate energy from damage skills. This guide will soon be updated with new analysis from this new finding. Stat tuned!

Many thanks to allenwfc, Scrubp, Rai, Psida, lurkerdegen, Indigo November, FieryWind, Wabblet, Not Daijoubu, Chills, Bubba, Misuzu, CCCP victim, Deliagwath, laif, Rayel, TheBoyAlex, and all helpful friends from #Research-Dungeon in the NIKKE Community Discord and #strategy in the main NIKKE Discord who helped make this guide possible with their valuable testing and research.

Hitting enemies will fill the burst bar, per hit; it does NOT scale with damage. I will refer to this as burst energy. There are a few hidden mechanics that we have discovered so far:

  • Different weapon types generate more energy per hit
  • Different reload types generate different amounts of energy per hit (longer reload = higher energy)
  • Units with multi-hit ability can generate extra energy, per hit on enemies and structures
  • Hitting multiple enemies generates extra energy, per hit
  • ALL units can generate energy from skill damage, equal to their base damage
  • Hit rate dependent weapons will generate more energy against close range enemies, due to less hits missing
  • Hitting boss enemies generates extra energy (double energy for boss hits)
  • Hitting structures generates energy, equal to hitting regular enemies.
  • Charge shot energy is NOT affected by charge percentage

Energy Generation by Weapon Type

This table ranks base burst energy by weapon reload type, energy per hit only. For the full analysis with reload time, hit rate, and AoE, see the next sections.

Shotgun burst generation is greatly affected by hit rate; see the burst energy generation tierlist section for more information on shotgun hit rate.

The maximum burst gauge bar is 10,000 energy.

Weapon TypeReload TypeBurst Gauge Generation (Base Energy Per Hit)Units (by Energy Generation;
by Alphabetical)
ShotgunClip Reload45 x 10 pelletsDrake, Maiden, Pepper, Product 23, Sugar, Neon, Viper
Rocket LauncherClip Reload345~355Anis, Jackal; Centi
Rocket Launcher2.5s Double-hit150 x 2 double-hitNoah
Sniper Rifle> 2.0s Harran Bug290 + Skill 1Harran
Sniper Rifle> 2.0s290Eunhwa
Sniper Rifle2.0s280Alice, Dolla, Exia, Helm, Maxwell, Milk
Sniper Rifle< 2.0s265 ~ 275Yulha; Admi; Delta, Frima
ShotgunFull Clip20 x 10 pelletsEther, Guilty, Isabel, Mary, Neve, Poli, Soldier FA
Rocket Launcher> 2.0s
Full Clip
145Laplace, Rapunzel
Rocket Launcher2.0s
Full Clip
140Anne, Belorta, iDoll Flower, Mica, N102, Noise, Vesti, Yan, Yuni
Assault Rifle> 2.0s45Scarlet
Assault Rifle>= 1.5s25iDoll Sun, Mihara, Snow White
Assault Rifle< 1.5s20Brid, Folkwang, Julia, Privaty, Product 08, Rapi, Rupee, Sin, Soldier EG, xRupee
Submachine Gun2.0s Double-hit10 x 2Crow, Soline, Quency
Submachine Gun> 2.0s15Ludmilla
Submachine Gun<= 2.0s10Crow, Epinel, iDoll Ocean, Liter, Miranda, Novel, Signal, Soldier OW, Soline
Machine GunALL5Aria, Diesel, Emma, Guillotine, Modernia, Product 12

Units With Irregular Energy Generation

Unit NameIrregularityDescription
HarranSkill 1 DoTEnergy generation from DoT skill damage; 290 energy (same as her base energy) per tick for 5 ticks. Harran’s skill can apply on multiple enemies, greatly increasing her energy generation.
Noah, Crow, SolineDouble hitEnergy generation from firing two bullets per shot. Noah is also affected by AoE irregularly as a rocket launcher.
ALL Rocket LaunchersArea of Effect on hitRocket launchers have AoE damage on hit, meaning they will have higher energy generation in most battles due to multi hits and hitting structures.
Belorta, Laplace, VestiIncreased AoE rangeThese units have increased AoE range, meaning they will have higher average increase in energy generation from AoE hits than other rocket launchers.
Alice, HarranPiercePierce attacks hit through the target to deal AoE damage on hit, meaning they will have higher energy generation in most battles due to multi hits and hitting structures.

Burst Energy Generation Tierlist

Units listed by how quickly they generate a full burst bar, which is 10,000 energy.

ST testing done against the closest range enemy in shooting range (0 range). AoE, mixed range testing done in Simulation Room (44% near, 35% mid, 21% far); time between spawns are subtracted. There is high variance in the mixed AoE tests, and those numbers should be regarded as a rough estimate to compare with the better-controlled near ST tests. No hits on boss enemies for any tests. Some information comes from calculations rather than testing.

Clip reload shotguns can generate up to 450 energy per shot (45 x 10 pellets), but even at closest range (0), against a regular enemy they hit 7 ~ 10 pellets per shot, for an 8.5 average. This number drops dramatically outside of their effective range (0 ~ 25). Beyond 35 range, shotgun hit rate can fall below 1 hit per shot, especially against smaller enemies. However, against large bosses they are able to hit all 10 pellets consistently. The same holds true for all other shotguns, though the change is less noticeable (20 x 10 pellets). For the purposes of this tierlist, shotgun hit rate is assumed at 8.5 pellets per shot for close range ST, and at 3 for mixed range AoE. No hit rate buffs assumed.

Rocket launchers’ energy generation rise steeply against AoE targets, especially in maps where there are many structures. Launchers with explosion range increase abilities will have even greater value. The same holds true for pierce units (Alice and Harran), though not to the same extent.

As energy per hit is not affected by charge amount for SR and RL, manual spamming greatly increases their energy generation. In some stages, it is possible to charge a full burst bar in as little as 3 seconds using this method. However, many units have full charge activated skills that may be more valuable. There is also the option of mixing full charge shots and quick shots for the best of both worlds. The data in this article assumes full charge shots, to be consistent with auto and AI play. Refer to the base energy per hit values to see which units benefit most from manual spamming.

Rank OverallUnitWeaponBase Energy Per HitAverage Time to Full Energy (Near ST) (seconds)Average Time to Full Energy (Mixed AoE) (seconds)
1CentiRL3454710
2AnisRL3554910
3NoahRL150 x 26115
4HarranSR290 + Skill 1 (1450 over 5 seconds)2320
5DrakeSG45 x 102265
6NeonSG45 x 102368
7SugarSG45 x 102470
7MaidenSG45 x 102470
7PepperSG45 x 102470
7Product 23SG45 x 102470
11LaplaceRL14512327
12VestiRL14012828
13BelortaRL14016728
14RapunzelRL14512828
15iDoll FlowerRL14012231
15MicaRL14012231
17YuniRL14016732
18N102RL14016732
18NoiseRL14016732
18YanRL14016732
21CrowSMG10 x 23876
21SolineSMG10 x 23978
23iDoll SunAR254488
23Snow WhiteAR254488
25MiharaAR254590
26ScarletAR4550100
27LudmillaSMG155055
28MarySG2050149
28PoliSG2050149
30PrivatyAR2052102
30RupeeAR2052102
30RapiAR2052102
33Soldier EGAR2053104
34JuliaAR2053104
35IsabelSG2053157
36BridAR2055106
36FolkwangAR2055106
38EtherSG2056160
38Soldier FASG2056160
40EpinelSMG1059118
40NovelSMG1059118
40SignalSMG1059118
43DollaSR2806161
43ExiaSR2806161
43HelmSR2806161
43MaxwellSR2806161
43MilkSR2806161
43Product 08SR2806161
49EunhwaSR2906161
50DeltaSR2656262
50FrimaSR2656262
52AdmiSR2706363
52YulhaSR2756363
54MirandaSMG1064126
55iDoll OceanSMG1065128
55LiterSMG1065128
55VolumeSMG1065128
58Soldier OWSMG1068130
59AliceSR2807760
60DieselMG58289
61AriaMG58389
62EmmaMG58490
62GuillotineMG58490
64Product 12MG58591

Arena

There are important differences in Arena mode which affect burst energy generation:

  • Hit Rate is 100% for all units. This means shotguns have very high energy generation.
  • RL will always hit 1~3 targets. At the beginning of a battle, they will usually hit 2 targets.
  • Most battles are decided by the first burst rotation. The team to first fill their burst gauge bar usually has a major advantage. This makes the first 5~8 seconds (average time to fill burst) crucial.

See the Arena (PvP) page for the full analysis.

Testing Methods Used

If you have testing data that contradicts any information in this guide, please contact us through discord with video or stream of your testing method(s).

Simulation room tests that measure time (seconds) were more accurate when starting after boss spawn due to forced camera pan. Unit placed in middle slot with no cubes equipped for consistency.

ModeUnit(s)MethodResults
Shooting RangeALLTarget closest range enemy (0 range) until burst gauge filled to full.Average time (seconds) to full burst bar recorded to compare burst generation between units. Results shown above.
Shooting RangeALLTarget furthest range enemy (45 range) until burst gauge filled to full.Time (seconds) measured and compared with close range results. Some variance due to structures sometimes being hit by spread. On shotguns, energy generation was lower even despite some structure hits. On snipers, there is no difference between close range results.
Shooting RangeSniper (level 1)Target structures only, using level 1 sniper.Structures grant energy on hit, equal to hits on regular enemies.
Shooting RangeAll weapon typesTarget boss only (35 range)Hits on boss enemies grant double the amount of energy as hits on regular enemies.
Simulation Room (1A)SniperRepeat tests from Shooting RangeEnergy generation appears the same as Shooting Range testing. Damage done, enemies killed and structures destroyed does not generate additional energy; energy is generated only on hit.
Simulation Room (1A)AnisAutoEnergy generation is significantly higher than ST shooting range tests (as high as 8 seconds vs 48 seconds). Assuming this is due to the number of closely grouped enemies and small structures in some simulation stages, each multi-hit likely generates the same amount of energy per hit.
Interception (D and S)ShotgunTarget the boss enemy hitting 10 pellets each shotThere was no difference between the number of shots required to reach full energy against Alteisen vs against Gravedigger. As the hit rate was the same 10 pellets per shot against both bosses, but Alteisen is further away than Gravedigger, this confirms that shotgun energy variance comes from hit rate and not range itself. Hitting boss parts or interruption circles also does not generate additional energy compared to regular boss hits.

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