Introduction
"Who should I equip my dolls on? Which Nikke's doll should I upgrade first? Should I equip R dolls first or SR dolls first on this Nikke?"
This guide aims to answer the above questions as best as possible! We will be dividing these answers into two simple parts. The first part will cover which Nikke should get the Doll first, The second part will cover which Nikke you should spend your Maintenance Kits to upgrade it to the top level! So, without further ado, let's get into it!
Equipping Priority
This section will cover which Nikkes you should equip your Weapon Based Dolls on first. We will be taking both PvE and PvP into consideration, and will have a separate priority tier for PvP Nikkes for each Weapon Type!
Sniper Rifle
Machine Gun
Support
Assault Rifle
Shotgun
DPS
Rocket Launchers
Sub-Machine Guns
Combining
After you have equipped dolls on all the Nikkes you want in a certain weapon type with R/SR dolls, you may start using that weapon type's doll into Combine for more materials to upgrade your dolls, or for a chance to get more SR dolls.In Combine, you can give 4 R dolls for a chance to get an SR doll. But most probably, you will receive Purple or Gold Maintenance Kits.
Upgrade Priority
Upgrading Dolls isn't the same as Equipping Dolls. It imposes different priorities because the buffs that they give vary in usefulness across weapon types. You may also consider upgrading Dolls solely for CP padding, albeit that one might be too resource-intensive for the average player. CP padding will improve your Campaign and PvP performance, but if you factor in the cost, it isn't really worth the hassle and investment.
Back to the topic, Dolls offer significantly more potent buffs for SR, RL, and SG as they increase the Total Damage Multiplier. AR can also benefit from the Core Damage Multiplier, but not all enemies have an exposed core. On the other hand, MG has it worse with just a tiny bit of Max Ammo increase, which is heavily diluted by Max Ammo OL. Thus, for MG, the buff is insubstantial, and upgrading it will not amplify damage output as much as upgrading an SG or SR Doll.
For more info about these weapon-specific buffs, visit the homepage of this guide series.
Therefore, we can conclude that there are 3 upgrading paths, depending on your goal:
- Are you aiming to maximize your damage output in Raids and other PvE content?
- Are you aiming to pad your CP for Campaign and PvP advantage?
- Are you planning to utilize a Treasure/Favorite Item?
The answer for No. 2 is relatively simple, so we'll answer that first. Basically, what you want to do is equip and upgrade Dolls on Nikkes you normally use for Campaign and PvP. We are not going to suggest any Nikkes here because everyone prefers to use different Nikkes for different content. However, since Dolls give stat boost, damage reduction, as well as cover HP increase, you may want to prioritize DPS first and units who need to absorb tons of damage, such as Noah, Noise, or Rapunzel.
Now, for maximizing damage output, it is honestly a little complicated because it also depends on the type of content, but for most people it would be Raids. Here are some tips to help you decide whose Doll to upgrade first:
- Some DPS may perform significantly better than other DPS in a Raid. Prioritize them first. For example, against Gravedigger, upgrading Red Hood's and Soda: Twinking Bunny's Dolls was a great idea.
- What we are saying here is that upgrade Dolls only after you know who you will use when a Raid is active. Do NOT upgrade them without knowing who is going to excel. Also prioritize DPS that has consistent performance across Raids or has shown a record of doing so. This includes SBS and Alice.
- Now, for weapon types, prioritize SR/RL/SG > AR > SMG/MG. Currently, we do not really have any powerful SMG DPS, so there is no reason to upgrade.
What if I wanted to maximize my damage output AND do CP padding at the same time? Well, you should then prioritize units that are used in all content. For example, we use Red Hood in Raids, Campaign, and even PvP. Upgrading her Doll is an economically wise choice.
Finally, the last question is in-arguably the most important. Why is that? Well, if you are planning to get Treasure for someone, do NOT even think about CP padding or upgrading Dolls for stat/damage boost beyond R 15 / SR 5. Your income of Maintenance Kits is very low. You should save them for upgrading your SR Doll to Level 15 for that Treasure Nikke instead.
Top Picks to spend your maintenance kits on!
Laplace - Favorite Item
Hands down the best unit to upgrade in our opinion. While upgrading other BiS units boosts their prowess, we believe that upgrading Laplace is better since it basically gives us not just a new unit, but a highly usable unit for every game mode!
Red Hood
The best unit in the game deserves all the respect she can get! Red Hood comes into Priority #2 for upgrades.
Alice
Alice, also one of the top DPS, benefits the most from Dolls compared to other SRs due to her higher base Charge Multiplier (350%). For us, she fits in right in the Priority #3 spot!
Modernia
Modernia is still one of the best DPS, and the doll can only improve her status! We put her right into Priority #4, mostly because of the increased CP the dolls offer. The MG doll counteracts against her Skill 2 (which reduces her Ammo) by providing Increased Max Ammo Capacity Buff, allowing her to shoot even more, and reducing the harsh requirements of Ammo needed from OL gear - albeit not by much. However, the base stats increase as well as the huge CP gain validate her upgrade even more since she is one of the most used campaign units!
Upgrade Priority Tier Lists
Priority of each Tier List is: Right to Left, Top to Bottom
Priority of each Favourite Item is given individually in the PvE Tier List