Character Guide - Mad Pleasure: Shadowbringer
An in-depth look into Thelema's first battle suit, a MECH Ice type Chain Blade user.
Introduction
[Mad Pleasure: Shadowbringer] (MPS) Thelema is the new battlesuit debuting in Version 7.4. She is an S-Rank MECH Type Ice DPS, and uses the new Part 2 Weapon type, Chained Blades. In this guide, I will be going through her kit, suitable team compositions, rotations, equipment, and more.
Character Mechanics
Banquet Enjoyment and Moment of Indulgence
Thelema has up to 6 stacks of Banquet Enjoyment. She can replenish these stacks by landing the 3rd Sequence of her Basic ATK, a Weapon Active, her QTE, or her Combo ATK.
When she has 6 stacks of Banquet Enjoyment, tapping [ATK] after evading or jumping will consume all Banquet Enjoyment stacks to unleash the Moment of Indulgence attack.
Moment of Indulgence gathers enemies, and is considered Combo ATK damage. Generating Banquet Enjoyment stacks from different sources increases the attack multiplier of the next Moment of Indulgence:
Basic ATK Seq 3: +120%
Combo ATK: +75%
Weapon Active: +90%
These tables contain data taken from an article CN user 从不摸鱼的便当 wrote.
The simplest and most efficient attack string in theory is 3 Basic > Weapon Active > 3 Basic, but it’s incredibly subject to boss behaviours and situations in actual combat, making the string used highly situational.
Turning on the passive skill Improvised Dance Steps allows Thelema to perform Moment of Indulgence simply by pressing the [ATK] or [EVA] button.
Astral Ring: Wheel of Destiny
Thelema is protected by the Astral Ring Specialization: Wheel of Destiny. When activating Astral Ring Specialization: Wheel of Destiny, Thelema enjoys various DMG buffs, fully restores Banquet Enjoyment, and gains 1 Quantum Mech Energy. Moment of Indulgence consumes 1 Quantum Mech Energy to restore 20 SP to Thelema. Thelema can also summon Phantoms in battle.
Phantoms
In Stellar Outburst and when Thelema is on the field, standby characters cannot be switched in and are replaced with Phantoms to aid in battle. When launching attacks, Phantoms deal 800% ATK of Ice DMG and grant Thelema Rondo in the Shadows for 5s, which makes attacks generate Phantoms, restore more Banquet Enjoyment, and boost the multiplier of the next attack restoring Banquet Enjoyment (Basic ATK Seq 3, Combo ATK, or Weapon Active). Rondo in the Shadows is removed when Stellar Outburst ends. DMG dealt by Phantoms is considered Shadow Star Attack.
Astral Ring: World Star
Thelema is able to support Valkyries protected by Astral Ring: World Star. When activating Astral Ring: World Star, casting Moment of Indulgence buffs teammates, and Thelema provides a multitude of buffs for the team, as well as reduces the cooldown of Stellar Outburst. Moreover, she gains 6 Quantum Mech Energy. Consuming the first 4 Quantum Mech Energy allows her to cast Moment of Indulgence: Sick for every point consumed, and triggers Resonance Attack once. Consuming the last 2 unleashes Moment of Indulgence and triggers Resonance Attack twice.
Rime Trauma Charges
In battle, Thelema has up to 3 charges of Rime application. Holding Weapon Active consumes 1 charge to inflict 12 Rime Trauma on the enemy. Using Moment of Indulgence replenishes 1 charge.
Equipment
Weapon
This is Thelema’s signature weapon, Banquet Rose: Faux Crown. It has several strong buffs to herself, as well as limited support capabilities with a handful of teamwide buffs. Since Thelema is the first ever Chained Blades user, the alternative options are extremely limited, and the next best option is significantly worse. As such, it is strongly recommended to pull for her weapon. In summary, her weapon has:
Extra 3 second timestop after ULT
60% Ice DMG
18% Total DMG Taken to enemies
16% Ice DMG Taken to enemies
30% Total DMG for Thelema’s Phantoms
20% Total DMG during Stellar Outburst
30% teamwide Total DMG for Resonance Attacks
20% Elemental and Physical DMG for Valkyries with the Astral Ring Specialization Wheel of Destiny when Astral Ring Wheel of Destiny is activated
The weapon also has a Synergy skill, which will be covered below.
Weapon and Synergy Level Comparison
Shown above are results derived from a single rotation with the loadout shown in the graphic. First, I will go through the Synergy skills of both weapons shown in the test results.
Banquet Rose: Faux Crown - Enemies suffer a Total DMG Taken debuff from the team that is also an independent multiplier. As an independent multiplier, it boosts damage considerably more than a regular multiplier. Moreover, Thelema’s first ULT also has a reduced SP cost. With both the SP discount and the independent multiplier, this is a very strong Synergy skill for her.
Phantom Seafarer - Wielder gains a Total DMG bonus and gets more Total DMG in Stellar Outburst. These are regular multipliers, and will not be nearly as valuable as Banquet Rose’s Synergy skill.
Why is the damage difference between Phantom Seafarer and Banquet Rose so big? While it’s been a recurring theme in HI3 to have Valkyries rely heavily on their signature gear, this is one of the most significant differences between the 2nd best option in the history of the game. One of the biggest reasons is Banquet Rose’s ability to create a 3 second long Time-frozen Domain after her ULT. 3 entire seconds of damage is huge, and even more importantly, it can artificially extend Thelema’s Astral Ring uptime by 6 seconds in a rotation where she uses her ULT twice. Phantom Seafarer is unable to do so, and hence its damage falls drastically, with buffs running out sooner. Add Banquet Rose’s multitude of other buffs, and it’s clear why there’s such a big difference.
So, is it worth it to keep pulling for Synergy level 3 of Banquet Rose? Just like Senadina’s weapon, I doubt it would be necessary even in Nirvana, and may not even be necessary for people aiming for a spot in Myriad. While damage comparisons don’t take into account the SP reduction Thelema’s signature provides with its synergy skill, it’s not super necessary, and is mostly for Memorial Arena strategies. Moreover, the damage difference is negligible and it would be much more worth it to save for future characters. However, I would still strongly recommend pulling for Synergy level 1.
Stigmata
Signature Set - Splendors of Amber
This is Thelema’s signature stigmata set. It is far and away her best option, and with Part 2’s new system of making all Part 2 stigmatas craftable, there is no reason for you not to get it. A placeholder set that can be used while waiting for the materials to craft the stigmata is Willows TMB, but if you don’t have it, don’t bother crafting it, as it’ll be much faster to craft this immediately instead.
Required Materials for Crafting
These are the materials needed to craft the full Splendors of Amber stigmata set. Note that there is an extremely low chance you will ever need to craft all 3 stigs, since pulling for the weapon will likely get you one or more.
Recommended Teams
Thelema’s most recommended team, consisting of Senadina and Coralie as supports, is her main team and has the highest damage potential, with Thelema and Senadina working incredibly well together due to their highly synergistic kits and Astral Ring Specialization. In pretty much every situation, this team is the best option to run.
The second team, consisting of Part 1 supports Jade Knight and Sugary Starburst, is much weaker and only recommended if you don’t have Senadina.
Thelema also supports Senadina, and replaces Coralie in her team. Senadina must be the leader in this team instead of Thelema.
About Senadina
Senadina (Deepspace Anchor: First Light) is an incredibly crucial part of Thelema’s team. Without her, Thelema will suffer huge losses to her damage output and rotations won’t go as well. While alternative options such as Part 1 Ice supports or using Helia and Coralie will still let you play her, it won’t be able to come close to what Senadina can offer for Thelema.
Rotations
Disclaimer
Thelema is a Valkyrie with an incredibly complicated kit. There are several rotation examples shown below for various combat situations, but this list is non-exhaustive. The rotations shown below are merely a few of many examples you can use in combat.
Part 2 Team Rotations
Astral Ring Rotation
This is an incredibly basic rendition of what a Stellar Outburst sequence would look like. Due to the various combos Thelema can carry out, as well as their situational usage (for example, holding the Weapon Active may be done if the boss requires being frozen). As stated above, do not limit yourself to this rotation, and be flexible depending on the combat scenario you find yourself in.
Below is a video example of the rotation.
Non-Astral Ring Rotation
I wouldn’t really call this a rotation per se. Thelema focuses heavily on using Stellar Outburst, and this is merely a way to deal damage and farm Astral Ring Intensity as efficiently as possible. The number of sequences varies depending on what AstralOp is being used. Specifically, at SS Rank or higher, Songque enables Thelema to need less sequences, allowing her to get back into Stellar Outburst much faster.
Below is a clip which includes the ending of the Stellar Outburst rotation, showing how long it will take to get back enough Astral Ring Intensity without external sources.
The Songque used in this clip is S Rank. Since the non Stellar Outburst rotation is longer, using ULT after the first Moment of Indulgence is fine because by the time the Astral Ring recharges, Thelema’s ULT cooldown would have finished. Recharging would be significantly faster with SS Songque and higher, in which case you wouldn’t use ULT.
About Songque
Whether Thelema needs Songque is quite subjective in my opinion. While it’s true that Songque is a great upgrade for Thelema (more DMG, faster Astral Ring Intensity recharge etc), you only really need this level of investment in Nirvana. In fact, even in Nirvana, it’s possible to do well with just Dreamseeker or Elf Elysia. Moreover, Songque needs SS rank to be useful, as her S rank is severely lacking and also does not have the Intensity recharge which is a big factor in why she is so useful for Thelema. SS Songque is simply not an important enough investment for most players, especially F2Ps with limited crystals to spend. However, for those who can afford it, she is a great upgrade for Thelema.
Thelema Support Rotation (Senadina DPS)
Senadina’s rotation doesn’t change much with Thelema, only replacing Coralie inputs with attacks from Thelema. Players who have been using Senadina since v7.3 should have no problem getting used to this rotation.
Below is a video example of this rotation.
Part 1 Team Rotation
Standard Rotation
Standard usage of Kira and Sushang. When using Thelema in this team, it’s possible to optimise combos to pull off a 3rd Moment of Indulgence, but personally I feel that it’s more comfortable to build up 3 Banquet Enjoyment stacks for the next rotation.
Below is a video example of this rotation.
You’ll notice I added another x3 BA > WA x3 BA sequence after the rotation. The purpose of that was to pad out buff timings on both Sushang and Kira. It’s also why I said changing the last part could allow for a 3rd Moment of Indulgence.
Should I pull?
Thelema is an incredibly strong Valkyrie with a very complex playstyle. However, her reliability on specific teammates, namely Senadina, makes the answer less straightforward than usual. Needless to say, she will be very strong against the existing Ice bosses as well as any new ones that may come in the future. However, this alone doesn’t make her a must pull.
For newer players who may have started later into Version 7.3 or in 7.4 and missed out on Senadina, while you may be itching to pull, I must remind you that she really wants Senadina in her team. While a lack of Senadina doesn’t make Thelema useless, players who aim to be more meta oriented may want to wait for future news before pulling. Senadina also has relatively higher value, being able to support all 3 elements AND Physical, so pulling her on a rerun may be a consideration, depending on information released in the future (i.e. news related to Version 7.5.). However, Thelema is still a strong unit, and isn’t the worst thing to pull even without Senadina.
For players who already have Senadina, I would strongly recommend pulling for Thelema. She is a very strong DPS unit, and benefits Senadina as much as Senadina benefits her. Moreover, parts of her kit and equipment suggest that she may be used to support more characters in the future, and not just Senadina.
About Herrscher of Reason
In my opinion, having Herrscher of Reason and her Divine Key, Star of Eden: World doesn’t necessarily make Thelema a skip.
While they technically fill the same niche of MECH Ice DPS, with HoR’s debut in v3.3 almost 5 whole years ago, she’s incredibly ancient and cannot compare to Thelema. While some may argue that HoR’s Divine Key gave her a boost of life, it has quickly faded with Thelema outshining HoR in every way possible.
Moreover, Thelema doesn’t just act as a DPS. As mentioned earlier, she is a great supporting unit and will very likely be important in the future. Skipping her and completely disregarding this is a rather bad decision.
In summary, Herrscher of Reason is old, and it’s time for her to rest. Personally, she’s one of my favourite designs and I’m sad to see her go, but it’s time to move on.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Thelema is a strong unit for anyone who already has Senadina, but her performance drops for those who don’t. Nevertheless, she is still a powerful Ice DPS who can easily clear a big portion of the Ice content, and we may see her supporting future releases too.
Thank you for reading my guide! I hope it helped you learn more about Thelema. If I made any mistakes, please let me know and I will rectify them as soon as possible. I will also try my best to answer any questions in the comments!