Meta Overview 2026
Black Swan remains the premier Wind Nihility DoT character since February 2025. Her Arcana mechanic stacks to 50 charges dealing 96% ATK Wind DoT with 240% base multiplier gaining 12% per stack. At 7+ stacks, she ignores 20% DEF. Her Ultimate's Epiphany debuff increases damage taken by 15-25%, creating multiplicative scaling with proper relics.
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Prisoner in Deep Confinement: The Standard
Usage: 98.51%
Performance: 8.93 MoC cycles, 39,990 Pure Fiction, 3,381 Apocalyptic Shadow
Set Bonuses:
- 2pc: +12% ATK
- 4pc: Ignore 6% DEF per DoT debuff (max 3 stacks = 18% DEF ignore)
Prisoner synergizes perfectly with Black Swan's kit. Arcana counts as Wind DoT, her Skill applies 14.8-20.8% DEF reduction for 3 turns, and paired with Kafka (Shock)/Sampo (Wind Shear)/Guinaifen (Burn), the set reaches max stacks consistently.
Math advantage: With three DoT types active, 18% DEF ignore applies to all damage instances. Combined with Black Swan's innate 20% DEF ignore at 7+ stacks, effective DEF penetration reaches 38% before her Skill's reduction.
Why it's meta: Activates passively once DoTs land. Black Swan's 50-72.5% Arcana application chance (65% with A2) ensures near-permanent uptime. The 12% ATK bonus directly scales her Arcana damage (base 659 ATK at level 80 = ~79 additional ATK).
Limitations: 18% DEF ignore caps at three DoT types. No Effect Hit Rate support forces 120% target through main stats/substats only.
Revelry by the Sea: ATK-Scaling Alternative
Usage: 54.66%
Performance: 8.66 MoC cycles, 40,000 Pure Fiction, 3,411 Apocalyptic Shadow
Set Bonuses:
- 2pc: +12% ATK
- 4pc: +12% DoT DMG at 2400 ATK, +24% at 3600 ATK
Revelry rewards hyper-investment. Target 3600 ATK requires ATK% Rope, ATK% substats, and ATK-focused Light Cones like Reforged Remembrance (+40-60% Effect Hit Rate, +5-9% ATK per Prophet stack).
Optimal scenarios: Sustained single/dual-target encounters with Ruan Mei support. Her ATK% buffs help reach 3600 threshold.
Breakpoint calculation: Base 659 ATK + 43.2% Rope + 12% 2pc + 30% substats = ~2200 ATK. Add Reforged Remembrance (36% ATK at 4 stacks) + Ruan Mei buffs = 3600+ ATK.
Damage Calculation Comparison
Arcana formula: Base Damage = (ATK × 0.96) × (1 + 2.40 + (Stacks × 0.12)) × (1 + DoT DMG%) × DEF Multiplier
Assumptions: 3200 ATK, 30 Arcana stacks, Wind DMG% Sphere, level 95 enemies (1150 DEF)
Prisoner:
- Base: 3200 × 0.96 = 3072
- Stack Multiplier: 1 + 2.40 + (30 × 0.12) = 7.00
- DoT DMG: 1 + 0.388 = 1.388
- DEF: 1150 / 1350 = 0.852
- DEF Ignore: 0.852 × (1 / 0.82) = 1.039
- Total: 30,987 per tick
Revelry (3600 ATK):
- Base: 3600 × 0.96 = 3456
- Stack Multiplier: 7.00
- DoT DMG: 1 + 0.388 + 0.24 = 1.628
- DEF: 0.852
- Total: 33,568 per tick
Result: 8.3% damage increase for Revelry at 3600 ATK. Breakeven at 3200 ATK where Revelry's 12% DoT bonus equals Prisoner's DEF ignore. Below 3200, Prisoner wins. Above 3400, Revelry scales harder.
Stat Priority
Main Stats:
- Body: Effect Hit Rate (mandatory)
- Feet: Speed
- Sphere: Wind DMG%
- Rope: ATK%
Targets:
- Effect Hit Rate: 120% (minimum 100%)
- Speed: 134 (160 for advanced optimization)
- ATK: 3100+ (3600 for Revelry)
Speed breakpoints: 134 = consistent turn advantage. 160 = double actions before enemy phases with Ruan Mei.
Substat priority: Effect Hit Rate > Speed > ATK% > Break Effect
Distribution:
- Effect Hit Rate: 43.2% Body + 40% Reforged Remembrance + 36.8% substats
- Speed: 134-160
- ATK%: Maximum after meeting above
- Crit: Zero value (DoT can't crit)
Pan-Cosmic Commercial Enterprise
Usage: 31.33%
Performance: 9.3 MoC cycles, 3,358 Apocalyptic Shadow
Set Bonuses:
- 2pc: +10% Effect Hit Rate + ATK equal to 25% of Effect Hit Rate (max 25% ATK)
At 120% Effect Hit Rate: +10% Effect Hit Rate + 25% ATK effective bonus.
When to use: Solving Effect Hit Rate requirements without perfect substats. Pairs with 2pc Prisoner for balanced stats. Enables flexible substat allocation for Speed/ATK%.
Firmament Frontline Glamoth
Usage: 11.89%
Performance: 8.67 MoC cycles, 3,334 Apocalyptic Shadow
Set Bonuses:
- 2pc: +12% ATK
- 4pc: +12% DMG at 135 Speed, +18% at 160 Speed
Rewards Speed-focused builds hitting 160 breakpoint. Damage bonus applies to all instances including Arcana ticks.
Speed tuning: Black Swan 160 → Kafka 135-145 → Ruan Mei 120-130 → Huohuo 110-120. Maximizes Arcana stacks before Kafka detonations.
Limitation: 18% DMG at 160 Speed underperforms Prisoner's 18% DEF ignore due to multiplicative vs additive scaling.
Team Composition Impact
Black Swan/Kafka/Ruan Mei/Huohuo (standard): Prisoner optimal. Guaranteed multi-DoT uptime from Kafka's Shock + Black Swan's Arcana. Kafka's Talent triggers all DoTs on enemy actions/her Skill.
Budget (Black Swan/Sampo/Asta/Natasha): Prioritize Effect Hit Rate consistency. Sampo's Wind Shear synergizes with Prisoner. Asta's ATK buffs favor Revelry if 3600 ATK achievable.
Pure Fiction: Revelry edges ahead (40,000 vs 39,990) in multi-target with ATK thresholds met. Higher base damage per tick matters more against lower-HP targets.
Memory of Chaos: Prisoner's DEF ignore excels against high-DEF bosses (8.93 vs 8.66 cycles, but Revelry requires 3600 ATK).
Apocalyptic Shadow: Revelry 3,411 vs Prisoner 3,381 when fully optimized.
Light Cone Synergies
Reforged Remembrance (42.17% usage):
- +40-60% Effect Hit Rate (S1)
- +5-9% ATK per Prophet stack (max 4 = 36% ATK)
- +7.2-10% DEF ignore per stack (max 40%)
Effect Hit Rate calc: 40% LC + 43.2% Body + 36.8% substats = 120%
DEF ignore stacking with Prisoner:
- Black Swan 7+ stacks: 20%
- Prisoner 4pc: 18%
- Reforged 4 stacks: 40%
- Total: 60.64% DEF ignore (multiplicative)
Eyes of the Prey (39.21% usage):
- +20-40% Effect Hit Rate (S5)
- +24-48% DoT damage
Pairs with Revelry: 48% LC + 24% Revelry = 72% DoT damage bonus.
Damage comparison:
- Prisoner + Reforged: 102.9% damage increase from DEF ignore
- Revelry + Eyes: 110.8% damage increase from DoT bonuses
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Common Mistakes
Over-investing Effect Hit Rate: Diminishing returns after 120%. Most enemies have 40-60% Effect RES. Invest excess substats in ATK%/Speed.
Wind Set misconception: 4pc requires mono-Wind teams sacrificing Kafka synergy. 18% Wind DMG underperforms Prisoner's 18% DEF ignore.
Neglecting Speed: 134 Speed = 25-33% more actions over extended fights. Action economy beats marginal ATK% increases.
Turn value calc: 102 Speed = 5 actions in 10 enemy turns. 160 Speed = 7 actions. 40% more Arcana applications exceeds 400 ATK damage gain.
Build Recommendations
F2P (2-3 weeks farming):
- Set: 2pc Prisoner + 2pc Pan-Cosmic
- Ornament: Pan-Cosmic
- Stats: 100% Effect Hit Rate, 134 Speed, 2800+ ATK
- LC: Eyes of the Prey (S5) or Good Night and Sleep Well
Mid-Investment (1-2 months):
- Set: 4pc Prisoner
- Ornament: Pan-Cosmic or Glamoth
- Stats: 120% Effect Hit Rate, 134-145 Speed, 3100+ ATK
- LC: Reforged Remembrance (S1) or Eyes (S5)
Standard endgame build. Requires 15-20 substat rolls into desired stats.
High-Investment (3+ months):
- Set: 4pc Revelry
- Ornament: Pan-Cosmic
- Stats: 120% Effect Hit Rate, 145-160 Speed, 3600+ ATK
- LC: Reforged Remembrance (S1+) or Eyes (S5)
Requires 25-30 rolls into ATK%. Achieves 8.66 MoC cycles, 40,000 Pure Fiction.
Future-proofing: Balanced Prisoner build (120% Effect Hit Rate, 145 Speed, 3200 ATK) adapts better to new characters than hyper-specialized Revelry.
Progression: 100% Effect Hit Rate → 134 Speed → 3100 ATK → 120% Effect Hit Rate + 145-160 Speed → 3600 ATK (Revelry only).
Farming Strategy
Cavern of Corrosion: 240 Trailblaze Power/day (6 runs × 40). Average 1-2 usable pieces/week = 2-3 weeks for functional 4pc.
Priority: Farm Prisoner first (universal DoT applicability). Farm Revelry only if 3600 ATK achievable with current LC/team.
Immersifier usage:
- Complete 4pc sets (missing Effect Hit Rate Body)
- Low-drop-rate sets (Revelry)
- Final build optimization
Avoid: General farming or multiple pieces needed. Save for functional → perfect build gap.
Character progression first: Full Ascension (308,000 Credits) + Traces (3,000,000 Credits) before intensive relic farming.
Trace priority: Talent > Ultimate = Skill > Basic
Eidolon priority: A6 (+60-72% DMG based on Effect Hit Rate) > A4 (65% Arcana on battle entry) > A2 (65% extra Arcana per DoT tick)
Begin relic farming after Trace level 8+ and Ascension 6.
Eidolon Considerations
E1 (Seven Pillars): 25% RES reduction on Wind Shear/Bleed/Burn/Shock. Favors Revelry (RES reduction stacks multiplicatively with DoT damage).
E2 (Weep Not): 6 Arcana stacks to adjacent enemies on defeat. Enhances Pure Fiction, favors Revelry's higher base damage per tick.
E0: Prisoner safest choice.
E1+: Flexibility for Revelry (RES reduction compensates for no DEF ignore).
E2+: Strongly consider Revelry for Pure Fiction AoE damage.
Advanced Arcana Mechanics
Stack scaling: Each stack +12% multiplier. At 50 stacks: 240% + (50 × 12%) = 840% base ATK. Makes ATK% substats exceptionally valuable.
3+ stacks: Additional 72% ATK Wind DoT to target, 50% chance to apply 1 Arcana to adjacent enemies. Favors Revelry in multi-target.
7+ stacks: 20% DEF ignore inherent.
Combined DEF ignore (Prisoner + Reforged):
- 1 - ((1 - 0.20) × (1 - 0.18) × (1 - 0.40)) = 60.64% total
Makes Prisoner + Reforged exceptionally powerful against high-DEF bosses, potentially exceeding Revelry even at max ATK.
FAQ
Best relic set for Black Swan 2026?
Prisoner in Deep Confinement (98.51% usage) for 18% DEF ignore. Revelry competitive at 3600+ ATK with 24% DoT damage (8.3% higher per-tick at max optimization).
How much Effect Hit Rate needed?
120% target for endgame (40-60% enemy Effect RES). Minimum 100%. Achieve via Effect Hit Rate Body (43.2%) + Reforged Remembrance (40%) + substats (36.8%).
Speed or ATK% boots?
Speed Feet mandatory. 134 Speed = 25-33% more actions vs base 102 Speed. 160 breakpoint offers further optimization with Ruan Mei.
Is Revelry better than Prisoner?
Revelry outperforms by 8.3% per-tick at 3600+ ATK (8.66 vs 8.93 MoC cycles). But Prisoner's 98.51% usage vs Revelry's 54.66% shows most find Prisoner's reliability more practical.
Best planar ornament?
Pan-Cosmic (+10% Effect Hit Rate, +25% ATK from conversion) for balanced stats. Glamoth (+18% DMG at 160 Speed) for specialized Speed builds.
Can Black Swan use 2pc combinations?
Budget builds benefit from 2pc Prisoner + 2pc Pan-Cosmic/Musketeer. But 4pc sets provide 30-40% more total damage in optimized scenarios.
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