'Goddess of Victory: NIKKE' has many iconic Pilgrim characters, but Scarlet is the one that immediately comes to mind. As a launch-era NIKKE, she recently saw her profile skyrocket during the 'Stellar Blade' collaboration. Though her PvE utility has been slightly overshadowed by power creep, she remains an immovable force in the Arena, holding onto her 0-tier status.

After what feels like an eternity, Scarlet has finally hit a 100% pick rate for Burst 3 in the Special Arena rankings. Having fallen from grace after August 1, 2024, she has successfully reclaimed her throne exactly one year later. Let’s dive into the current status of the Goddess of Victory: NIKKE Arena rankings and the latest pick rate data.

Champion Arena Top 64 Challenger Squad NIKKE Pick Rates

※ Based on 320 squad data points from the 'Champion Arena' involving Top 64 players between June 19 and July 2.
※ Please note that the grouping for each season may vary.

In the Champion Arena Season 6, four NIKKE were ubiquitous among the Top 64: Jackal (Burst 1), Noah (Burst 2), and both Scarlet and Helm (Burst 3). Biscuit’s presence remains erratic, fluctuating wildly; this time, one player opted to leave Biscuit out of their lineup entirely.

Looking at the popularity by Burst stage, Burst 1 is dominated by Rosanna, Noise, Rapunzel, Little Mermaid, Rumani, and Red Hood, with Moran nipping at their heels. Moran is truly shining in the Champion Arena, where players must field five teams. She is the essential component of the 'Zombie Deck,' famous for its stubborn survival; once health drops below a certain threshold, it surges back up significantly three times.

For Burst 2, we have the aforementioned Biscuit, Centi, Blanc, and Trony. Aside from Biscuit, the lineup is identical to Season 5. A curious point is Trony’s percentage. While Scarlet maintains a 100% pick rate, four players chose to bench Trony, bringing her to 93.8%. We will keep a close eye on whether Trony eventually joins Scarlet at the 100% mark.

The top-tier Burst 3 NIKKE include Drake (with treasure), Emilia, Maiden: Ice Rose (hereafter Ice Maiden), Soda: Twinkling Bunny (hereafter Bunny Soda), and Cinderella. Season 5 featured only Drake (with treasure) and Emilia. The rise of Cinderella, Ice Maiden, and Bunny Soda is logical, as they act as primary dealers in the Special Arena, offering both powerful AOE damage and team support.

Let’s take a look at the squad of SARYIN, who finished as the runner-up in this group. Facing the previous winner, KASHA, in the finals, SARYIN suffered a 4-1 defeat. Watching the narrow losses was truly painful. We wish them better luck in the coming season.

Round 1 pitted SARYIN’s Shotgun deck against KASHA’s Moran, Rumani, and Bay combination. Despite the high damage output of the shotguns, the opponent’s defensive wall proved too sturdy to break.

In Round 2, it seemed Cinderella’s firepower might secure the win, but the survival of KASHA’s Rapunzel triggered a snowball effect leading to Mana and Nero’s endurance, eventually resulting in a loss. It is all the more tragic given that Cinderella recorded the highest damage in the squad.

Round 3 was an impossible climb against KASHA’s Kilo. Even though Emilia’s pre-emptive Burst was successful, Kilo displayed monstrous defense. After Emilia’s Burst, the onslaught from Kilo and Biscuit forced a surrender, sealing the 3-loss defeat and the runner-up position.

The 4th Round, played after the outcome was decided, saw a defeat against a classic Scarlet party utilizing Emma and Jackal. It was a heartbreaker; in a split second, KASHA’s Scarlet landed a single flash strike that wiped out the entire party. Even with Jackal’s damage distribution, the raw power was staggering.

Finally, in the 5th Round, SARYIN broke the losing streak to claim a win. Although caught by Privaty’s pre-emptive Burst, the opponent lacked the necessary firepower to finish the job, allowing SARYIN to survive and secure a clean victory, effectively returning the favor from Round 1.

Special Arena Ranking Defense Deck NIKKE Pick Rate

※ Based on data from Top 10-40 players in the Special Arena (Servers 230-250) between June 18 and July 1.
※ Criteria based on the 'Defense Deck' set by each player at the time of data collection.
※ There may be discrepancies with current top-tier defense decks.

It has been nearly a year since August 2024, but Scarlet has finally reclaimed her 100% pick rate. This marks the resurrection of the classic two-pronged dominance of Noah and Scarlet. It seems those who had been excluding Scarlet have finally finished building her.

Outside of Scarlet's return, there were no major shifts in pick rates. There were minor movements, but nothing dramatic enough to suggest a meta-shift. After the Solo Raid concludes on July 10, we expect Helm’s pick rate to rise further due to increased investment in collectibles and treasures. Naturally, we may also see growth for other treasure-equipped NIKKE like Drake and Laplace. We look forward to seeing if next week’s data reveals any significant changes.

Next, we examine the defense deck of EDDEHHH, who placed 5th in the season. As a top-5 player, their setup is worth noting—all three squads are optimized for real-world combat with no wasted slots.

Squad 1 is a Scarlet, Jackal, and Trony combination. They included Rapunzel for constant healing and utilized Laplace (with treasure) for sub-DPS and Burst generation. Jackal and Trony are equipped with R-grade collectibles, while the others sport SR-grade gear. Surprisingly, they were not at level 15, which is quite a revelation for a top-tier player.

Squad 2 is a Scarlet: Black Shadow (hereafter Black Scarlet) main deck, using Noise, Noah, and Centi for rapid Burst generation. Little Mermaid is used as a debuffer for increased damage taken and as a crowd-control agent. While Little Mermaid has the ability to instantly charge the Burst gauge for every 400 total shells spent by allies, this ability is notoriously difficult to trigger without a machine gun-type NIKKE.

Squad 3 is centered around Emilia, featuring buffers like Red Hood, the invulnerability provider Blanc, and Helm (with treasure). It is one of the most common variations and boasts the highest combat power of the three squads. If you are struggling with your Emilia deck composition, this is a configuration worth considering.

Arena Meta Analysis

Anchor: Innocent Maid, appearing in the Champion Arena

There are NIKKE that players informally call 'Set NIKKE.' These are units that gain extra effects when paired together or share synergies. While not an official term, it is common parlance among users. Among these, some are strong enough to be used solo in raids or the Arena. Anchor: Innocent Maid (hereafter Innocent Anchor) is one such case.

Innocent Anchor provides a complex array of buffs to the entire team, including health recovery, accuracy increases, instant healing, and attack power boosts. The values are quite high, and since she uses a launcher, her Burst generation is respectable—comparable to Arena staples like Noise. Nine players in the Top 64 of this Champion Arena utilized her.

Admittedly, the additional effect of continuous healing only triggers when a full 'Aegis Squad' is formed. Currently, the only Aegis Squad member used in the Arena is Helm, who is usually relegated to the first-string deck, meaning there are few opportunities for them to pair up. However, as mentioned, Innocent Anchor’s base buffs are excellent enough to warrant a spot on their own.

NIKKE Issues

Collect your Jewels from the Arcade

To Goddess of Victory: NIKKE players, a 'mini-game' is never really mini. The recent Stellar Blade collaboration mini-game was so voluminous it was dubbed a 'big game.' Previous mini-games were so polished that players often joked, 'Couldn't this have been a standalone title?' Goddess of Victory: NIKKE has now introduced an Arcade feature where you can enjoy these past mini-games permanently.

Did you know you can earn Jewels from these revived games? This applies to all players—new, returning, or veteran—as it is an entirely new source of rewards. Each game has a target score, and hitting it grants Jewels. If you are short on currency for recruitment, try collecting Jewels from the Arcade.

User Poll - Which story event broke your tear ducts?

Last week, we ran a poll on what item you should prioritize exchanging your scrap bones for. 75 players participated, and 'Company Select Arms' took 1st place. Since Tier 9 company gear is otherwise randomized, it is notoriously hard to obtain, even for veterans. It is a rare chance to get a guaranteed selection, so missing it would be a shame. 2nd place was the Management Kit Box, and 3rd was the Good Teamwork Box.

One of the greatest strengths of Goddess of Victory: NIKKE is its high-quality storytelling. Players often praise it, asking, 'Does the story team even have human hearts?' or 'What colour is the blood of the scenario writers?' Even those who only experience the story through YouTube videos agree. The recent Stellar Blade story event was a real heart-wrencher. So, which story event among them left you in tears? Please cast your vote; we will reveal the results in next week’s Meca Ranking.