Guide
How the kit works
When Velina enters the field, Core Passive: Breeze in Bloom gives her 45 Windbloom. EX Special Attack: Wind Shear - Purifying Rise (Special) and EX Special Attack: Wind Shear - Triple Deathblow (Special) each give another 45, up to 135. In Investigation Zone mode, the entry effect can trigger once every 180 seconds.
Use Purifying Rise with enough Energy to dodge backward and attack. Dodging an attack during that movement triggers Vital View. With enough Energy, follow it with Triple Deathblow, or go into the fifth hit of Basic Attack: Dancing Fans after either EX Special Attack. Both EX attacks grant invulnerability; the fifth Basic hit reduces damage taken by 40% and raises Anti-Interrupt Level.
When Velina triggers Vortex, she gains Windbite and summons a Condensed Cyclone, at most once every three seconds. With two Windbite, her next Vortex consumes both, gains 150% DMG Multiplier and summons a Sweeping Cyclone instead. EX Special Attack: Wind Shear - Eye of the Storm (Special) also summons a Sweeping Cyclone and calls the previous character with a Quick Assist when its 90-point activation requirement is met.
Sweeping Cyclone lasts five seconds and hits every 0.5 seconds. Its first hit on an enemy with Contamination triggers Chromatic Tint, changing the cyclone to the corresponding attribute. Cyclone explosions can trigger Abloom on a target with a Wind Anomaly. Ultimate: Heed the Tempest also calls the previous character through Quick Assist after its attacks.
Build and why
Use four pieces of Wuthering Salon. Its two-piece bonus gives 10% Wind DMG. The four-piece effect gives 25 Anomaly Proficiency per EX Special Attack, up to two stacks, and 18% DMG after Velina triggers Windswept. Both effects last 40 seconds and can be refreshed.
For the remaining two pieces, use Swing Jazz or Moonlight Lullaby for 20% Energy Regen. Stick to the two-piece bonus of Moonlight Lullaby here: its four-piece squad effect requires a Support equipper, while Velina is Anomaly.
Choose Anomaly Proficiency on disc 4, Wind DMG Bonus on disc 5 and Energy Regen on disc 6. Look for Anomaly Proficiency and Percent ATK substats, in that order. Initial Energy Regen above 1.2 also raises Velina’s damage and Anomaly Mastery through her Core Passive, subject to its caps.
Joyau Dore is the first weapon choice. It gives 70 Anomaly Proficiency and boosts Velina’s Vortex and Windswept damage when her EX Special Attack deals Wind DMG. At two stacks it also gives the squad 60 Anomaly Proficiency. Flamemaker Shaker is next, with off-field Energy Regen and damage stacks from EX Special Attack or Assist Attack hits. Fusion Compiler is another option for ATK and Anomaly Proficiency.
Leveling priority
Follow the game’s order: level Core Passive: Breeze in Bloom first, then Special Attack, Chain Attack, Basic Attack, Assist and Dodge. The Core Passive matters because it governs Velina’s cyclones and the bonuses tied to initial Energy Regen. Special Attack comes next because her EX moves generate Windbloom and connect to the rest of her kit.
Chain Attack is next in the listed order, followed by Basic Attack. Leave Assist and Dodge until later. They still give Velina defensive options, including an invulnerable Dodge Counter and a Defensive Assist that deals Daze.
For maximum ascension, gather Denny, Basic Anomaly Certification Seal, Advanced Anomaly Certification Seal and Controller Certification Seal. Skill upgrades use Denny, Basic Windbite Chip, Advanced Windbite Chip, Specialized Windbite Chip, Hamster Cage Pass, Timeworn Husk and Higher Dimensional Data: Deep Erosion Circuit.
Mindscapes worth it
For a suggested first target, consider Saturation Project. It lets Windswept grant Windbite once every five seconds, and a Sweeping Cyclone changed by Chromatic Tint can accumulate the corresponding attribute’s Anomaly Buildup. That buildup is excluded from Anomaly DMG calculations. It also further increases the Windswept and Vortex damage bonus from Additional Ability.
Orderly Elegance is another useful early upgrade. Velina ignores 20% of the target’s All-Attribute RES when she triggers Vortex, while squad members’ Windswept damage ignores 20% Wind RES. It also adds Daze to the specified Sweeping Cyclone effect.
Chief Angel is a later option if you want to invest further. It can return one Windbite when Velina consumes two to strengthen Vortex, subject to a six-second cooldown. It also increases Wind Anomaly Buildup against affected enemies and strengthens a new Windswept based on the old one’s remaining duration.
You can skip M3 and M5 if you are looking for new mechanics: they raise skill levels instead. Tea Party Tribunal is optional too; it gives Velina 15% ATK for 40 seconds after an EX Special Attack.
Teams
If a teammate can put Contamination on an enemy, Sweeping Cyclone can change to that attribute through Chromatic Tint. The changed cyclone reduces the corresponding Attribute Anomaly Buildup RES as well as Wind Anomaly Buildup RES. Velina can then use her Quick Assist triggers to bring the previous character back in.
Common mistakes
Do not stay on Velina just to finish every Basic Attack string. Her EX attacks can lead straight into the fifth hit, while a Sweeping Cyclone keeps attacking after you switch. Remember that only one Sweeping Cyclone can exist at a time.
Do not treat every cyclone as an automatic Abloom. Its explosion must hit an enemy suffering a Wind Anomaly. An enemy defeated while affected by Sweeping Cyclone extends that cyclone by five seconds, but only once per cyclone.
Do not fill the last two disc slots with a four-piece effect Velina cannot use. In particular, Moonlight Lullaby’s team damage effect requires a Support equipper. Also check initial Energy Regen when building around Core Passive: Breeze in Bloom; the bonuses stop at their listed caps.
