Zenless Zone Zero 3.2 adds an entirely new Specialty, and Claret turns DEF into a multi-CRIT damage engine

Zenless Zone Zero Version 3.2, Their Secret Histories, went live on September 9.

The update introduces two new S-Rank Agents across its two halves: Claret first, followed by Roxy later in the version.

The larger systemic addition comes with Claret.

She debuts Armorer, a brand-new Agent Specialty added to the game's existing combat roles.

Claret is not simply a damage dealer that happens to scale with DEF

Claret is an S-Rank Electric Agent and the first Armorer character.

Every one of her skills uses DEF as its base damage multiplier.

That immediately changes how her equipment is evaluated.

A conventional damage dealer usually prioritizes ATK alongside CRIT Rate and CRIT DMG. Claret wants DEF without abandoning critical statistics.

The result is less a defensive character than an offensive character whose damage scaling has been deliberately moved onto another stat axis.

Gash prepares the target before Maim cuts into it

Claret's attacks build Gash accumulation on enemies.

Once that buildup is completed, the target enters the Gash state.

Specific skills can then trigger Maim.

Maim deals additional damage and provides a Laceration DMG boost.

That gives the kit a preparation-and-payoff rhythm rather than encouraging every skill to be used immediately when its cooldown ends.

Claret establishes her own target state before exploiting it.

Going beyond 100 percent CRIT Rate is intentionally useful

The strangest part of the kit is multi-CRIT.

When Claret's CRIT Rate exceeds 100 percent, the excess does not simply become wasted value.

It contributes to multi-CRIT behavior, with Laceration DMG used in place of conventional CRIT DMG for the calculation.

A portion of her initial CRIT DMG is also converted into initial CRIT Rate.

HoYoverse has therefore deliberately created a character for whom stacking DEF, CRIT Rate and CRIT DMG can remain meaningful even after values reach a point that other Agents would normally treat as a ceiling.

That creates an entirely new Drive Disc problem

The immediate consequence is buildcraft.

Drive Discs with unusually heavy CRIT Rate substats can have a different value on Claret because exceeding 100 percent can still contribute to her output.

DEF also stops behaving like a consolation roll when the character directly converts it into damage.

That does not turn every bad Disc into a good one.

It does change the ideal stat distribution enough that players have to evaluate parts of their inventory using a different set of assumptions.

Armorer also introduces Counter Assist

The new Specialty has another identity beyond stat scaling.

Armorer Agents can use Counter Assist against selected enemy Control Skills.

Version 3.2 also changes several interactions so the first hit of certain Control Skills can be answered through Defensive Assist.

A successful Counter Assist lets the Armorer contest the attack and push the enemy back.

The Specialty is therefore built around a mixture of offense and resistance rather than functioning as a conventional tank category.

HoYoverse had to build an entire material economy around the new Specialty

Adding a combat role also means adding everything required to upgrade it.

Version 3.2 introduces the Agent Promotion - Armorer Drill stage.

It provides the Certification Seals required for Armorer promotion.

A W-Engine Modification - Armorer Synergy Test stage provides the corresponding W-Engine materials.

The Signal Shop is receiving some of those new resources as well.

Armorer is therefore not a label placed on Claret's profile.

HoYoverse has built a permanent progression branch that can support additional Agents later.

The W-Engines already make it clear Claret will not remain alone forever

Crimson Thirst is the limited S-Rank W-Engine released alongside Claret.

Version 3.2 also adds the A-Rank Bloodmarrow Coffer, A-Rank Catty Luck and B-Rank Lunar Semiluna for Armorer characters.

Bloodmarrow Coffer is also selectable through New Eridu City Fund rewards.

Building several W-Engines across different rarities would make little sense for a Specialty intended to disappear after one Agent.

Armorer should therefore be read as a permanent extension of Zenless Zone Zero's combat structure.

Claret's banner runs through September 30

Bloodmoon Rising is her limited Signal Search.

The first half of Version 3.2 runs through September 30 at 11:59 server time.

Anton and Nicole are the default boosted A-Rank Agents.

The same phase also features the return of Nangong Yu, an S-Rank Ether Stun Agent.

Both Claret and Nangong Yu can be tested in audition stages before players commit their Polychromes.

A-Rank banner targeting now offers a little more control

Exclusive Agent and W-Engine Channels allow Proxies to select two A-Rank options as their boosted targets.

If no custom selection is made, the banner's default A-Rank choices remain active.

The main pity structure still follows the rules of the relevant channel, but the additional selection reduces some randomness around intermediate pulls.

It is not a radical rewrite of gacha economics.

For players specifically hunting A-Rank duplicates, however, it is considerably more useful than another generic Rate Up label.

Roxy represents the other half of Flint Workshop

Roxy arrives in the second half of Version 3.2.

She is an S-Rank Wind Stun Agent and the chief smith of Flint Workshop.

Her kit revolves around Eyes of the Storm.

Holding her EX Special Attack creates a tornado on the field and leaves an Eye of the Storm.

Those zones can later be gathered and detonated into a much larger tornado.

Her Ultimate generates multiple tornadoes before delivering a large-area attack in front of her.

Claret therefore introduces the new Specialty while Roxy stays within the familiar Stun role but emphasizes battlefield control.

The new chapter takes the Proxies to Vyrium

Their Secret Histories is also the title of Season 3 Chapter 3.

The Proxies travel to Vyrium, a special zone of Shrouded Reef, to continue treating the mutated power affecting their body.

They discover that Roscaelifer has already been infiltrated by TOPS.

A shipment of Porcelloy from Flint Workshop then vanishes at a transfer station, drawing Claret and Roxy directly into the investigation.

The trail eventually reaches a covert research facility connected to Helios Academy.

HoYoverse is therefore introducing both new Agents through the central story rather than isolating them inside a disposable side event.

Roscaelifer gets additional restricted areas

Version 3.2 expands the region with Vyrium District.

Porcelloy Research Institute and Shrouded Reef Transfer Station are also added as restricted areas connected to the new chapter.

Several new tactical enemies and boss encounters accompany those locations.

The story expansion is therefore backed by new combat spaces rather than sending players straight back through existing stages.

Operation Bagel II gets Armorer equipment too

Enigma of the Labyrinth: Operation Bagel II receives another seasonal update.

Claret and Roxy get new Tactical Prisms, while Armorer receives dedicated General Gear.

The new Break-Even Beacon introduces a useful extraction mechanic.

Using it lets a Bangboo carry away some supplies in advance.

If the run later fails, those supplies are not lost and still count toward the current round's total.

The mode also receives additional Z-Rank Valuables, seasonal rewards and a ranking reset.

Version 3.2 is also friendlier to newer accounts

The Beginner Guide now includes Jane, Hugo and Soldier 0 - Anby in its selectable S-Rank reward.

Players who did not claim the corresponding perk during Version 3.1 can choose one after updating.

Completing the second phase of the related missions also allows them to select a corresponding S-Rank W-Engine.

That directly lowers the gap between a recent account and one that already owns several years of limited Agents.

HoYoverse is giving away Angels of Delusion outfits too

Versions 3.2 and 3.3 distribute several Angels of Delusion faction costumes through events.

Angels Support Operation lets players choose a free outfit for Nangong Yu, Aria or Sunna after completing the required missions.

A fourteen-day check-in event provides another selectable outfit.

Players can claim those costumes even if they do not currently own the corresponding Agent.

For a gacha game, placing a skin in somebody's account before they own its character is a remarkably efficient way to create a future banner decision.

The real addition in 3.2 is not Claret but everything designed to exist after her

A new Agent quickly stops being the center of attention when the next banner begins.

A new Specialty remains.

Armorer already has dedicated materials, W-Engines, VR training, Operation Bagel Gear and mechanics that do not exist in the game's other roles.

Claret is simply the first character responsible for demonstrating the framework.

The more interesting question is what HoYoverse does when additional Armorer Agents arrive.

A role capable of scaling offense from DEF, benefiting from CRIT Rate beyond 100 percent and directly countering selected control attacks has enough design space to become much more than one version's gimmick.

Zenless Zone Zero 3.2 is therefore not simply adding another character to pull.

It is adding another entire column to the spreadsheet players use to decide where those Polychromes should go.