Discover the Best Hailey Build Guide for The First Descendant and how to create a powerful character with Skills, modules, and weapons.
This build guide has been updated forHotfix 1.1.0of The First Descendant.
Best Hailey Build Guide for The First Descendant
Hailey is a sniper-based Descendant introduced in Hotfix 1.1.0, Season 1 Update. She is unique in blending Chill and Cyro damage with her passive, incentivizing players to play at 25 meters or greater. At further range, Hailey does more weak point damage and is a boss melting machine. Her playstyle is safe, allowing for range without being up close likeBunnyor other close-quarters Descendants.
The downside of playing Hailey is being forced into range. Moreover, she has some restrictive movement and lacks high mobility. She’s a sniper and plays exactly like one. Max range, huge damage, and destroying single target bosses from afar.
Features and Mechanics for Hailey Build in The First Descendant
The following list presents all the best Hailey Build guide Features and Mechanics for the First Descendant:
How to unlock Hailey in The First Descendant
Hailey is unlockedfor free by researching four unique parts and 400,000 gold or you can buy the character immediately with 900 Caliber.Hailey has a unique material known as DNA that can only be obtained by completing invasion or certain hard infiltration operations. Players will want to prioritize obtaining DNA materials because they come from Invasion Dungeon with a 100% drop. Invasions event occurred daily in two dungeons, so there were limits when obtaining the material. However, you can complete Hard Mode Infiltrations and get the material from monster drops. To get started, progress through the new main story, unlocking Invasions and Inversion Reinforcement.
Below is a list of all the required research material for Hailey:
Best Skill for Hailey
Storm Snare is the best skill for Hailey because it is one of the highest-power-scaled abilities in the game. The skill Storm Snare gives a brief animation, shooting a massive Cyro beam at one or more enemies. With Storm Snare, you gain over 8,000% skill power to direct damage hit. This is the highest in the game and is meant to nuke single-target bosses by stacking skill power. Storm Snare has a long animation, similar toSharen’sFlash Shortsword ability. Your character turns a huge beam that projects up to 9 Cyro beams.
Since Storm Snare scales from Chill and Singularity, players will want to collect the Frozen Singularity reactor. Moreover, you build into Skill Power increase with mods and anything buffing chill, like focus on the chill mod. Playing at 25 meters or greater will also increase weak point damage, so Hailey will use this ability and or weapon attacks from a max distance if possible.
Lastly, Hailey can use her Cold Fury skill to decrease her movement speed but boost her critical hit rate. Using her skill kit, mods, and weapons, Hailey’s Storm Snare is the perfect boss-melting skill or mob clear.
Safe Strategic Retreat (Passive)
Safe Strategic Retreat Features in The First Descendant:
How to Use Safe Strategic Retreat: you gain weak point damage from playing at 25 meters or more. Therefore, you’ll want to play Hailey at a distance when bossing due to this bonus. However, losing the weak point bonus isn’t critical when mobbing.
Cryo Round
Cryo Round Features in The First Descendant:
How to Use Cyro Round: Cyro Round is your trash mob skill, auto-targeting multiple enemies (up to 9).The skill power isn’t that powerful, but the amount of enemies is high. Therefore, use Cyro Rounds to clear multiple enemies, and Storm Snare is your single target’s direct damage skill.
Storm Snare
Storm Snare Features in The First Descendant:
How to Use Storm Snare: it’s best to use Storm Snare at a long distance because it has a long animation. Once activated, aim for weak point or a large group depending on enemies. You will need to aim this skill, and best to use to burst bosses down and be aware of the MP cost.
Cold Fury Features in The First Descendant:
How to Use Cold Fury: Used to buff yourself, have active at all times for 100% skill critical hit rate
Zenith Features in The First Descendant:
How to Use Zenith: Zenith transforms your character’s weapon into a unique weapon that scales on your base weapon damage.It’s essentially a super sniper with four shots,which gains MP when hitting weak points.Forced in animation while firing, so be sure to do it from safety.
How to play Hailey in The First Descendant
The best way to play Hailey is building for maximum distance and skill power, maintaining cold fury for skill, and increasing firearm critical hit damage. Cold Fury will slow you down, but radically increase your damage. Once you’ve reached max stacks, activate Storm Snare for your burst damage at single targets or AOE. Regarding clearing mobs, Cyro Round is your passive damage skill, which will target up to 9 monsters.
To regenerate MP and continue to cycle, activate Zenith’s unique weapon, and aim for weak points at a maximum range of 25 meters or greater. At 25 meters or more, you gain weak point damage via Hailey’s passive. Zenith’s unique MP regeneration feature can restore 15% per shot, and you have a max of four shots.
In summary, maintain Cold Fury buff at all times. Use Storm Snare for your main kill shot at max range if possible. Cyro Rounds is used to destroy weak enemies, and then Zenith is used to regenerate MP. Repeat this skill cycle and rely more on Hailey’s skill than gunplay.
Descendant Modules for Hailey Build
MP Conversion, Front Lines, and Focus on Chill are the best modules mods for a Hailey Build becausethey decrease her cooldowns, help get to 100% skill critical hit rate, and boost chill damage. Hailye’s skill skit is centered on Chill damage and skills. Moreover, you want high-skill power critical hit rate and critical hit damage to take advantage of Hailey’s powerful skill scaling. As of the making of this guide, Hailey doesn’t have availabletranscendent modules. Those will be released later, and we will update this build accordingly.
Below are the priorities for obtaining the best Hailey Mods:
Hailey Best Modules for Leveling
Below is a list of the best leveling mods for Hailey Build in the First Descendant:
Hailey Best Modules
Below is a list of the best mods for Hailey Build in the First Descendant:
Best Reactor Stats for Hailey in The First Descendant
Frozen Singularity is thebest reactorfor a Hailey build. It gives you skill power posts in Chill and Singular.Hailey’s most damage-producing skills are chill and singular, which is a great choice. Ideally, you can use rare and equip a Hand Cannon or Ultimate quality with an Afterglow Sword. Below is our recommendation for the best Hailey reactors:
In The First Descendant, reactors are powerful enhancements significantly impacting a character’s abilities, stats, and overall performance. Each reactor comes with an “optimal condition,” which requires a specific weapon type to be equipped to activate. Therefore, this should be your primary weapon for the build. They function as core components that provide substantial boosts and unique effects, enabling players to tailor their characters to specific playstyles and strategies.
Weapons for Hailey Build
Thunder Cage Submachine Gun, Nazeistra’s Devotion Hand Cannon, and the Afterglow Sword Sniper Rifle are the best weapons for Hailey because they damage her at any range.Thunder Cage has a high rate of fire and an overcharge bonus. Overcharge grants the following special bonus: defeating an enemy prompts that enemy to unleash an electric shockwave, dealing firearm ATK to nearby enemies within 3 meters, with additional damage. Therefore, with Thunder Cage, you can gain even more AOE damage and boost weapon attacks as well. Afterglow Sword is your Sniper rifle to be used at 25 meters or greater, while Nazeistra’s Devotion is perfect for mid-range combat.
The following list presents the best weapon choices for Hailey Build:
Thunder Cage Submachine Gun
Thunder Cage features in the First Descendant:
TheThunder Cageis helpful for Hailey because it can clear mobs using general rounds. The Overcharge effect gives a chain reaction kills when clearing mobs. Below are the best weapon mods for the Thunder Cage Submachine Gun:
Nazeistra’s Devotion
Nazeistra’s Devotion features in the First Descendant:
For Hailey,Nazeistra’s Devotion Hand Cannonis a valuable weapon because of the rounds and its defensive debuff on targets. This gives others in your team, including yourself, more damage if you run out of general rounds. Below are the recommended mods:
Afterglow Sword Sniper Rifle
Afterglow Sword Sniper Rifle features in the First Descendant:
TheAfterglow Sword Sniper Rifleis the best choice for ranged precision weak point damage. Once you trigger Death Propagation, you gain increased reload and damage on weak points. Use this weapon for ranged headshots if possible. Below are the recommended mods for the Afterglow Sword Sniper Rifle:
External Component
Slayer is the best External Component for Hailey because it boosts her skill power. Hailey’s build centers on building max skill power; thus, a four-piece Slayer is recommended. However, Tomb Vanguard, Battle Aesthetics, and other easier sets can work in replacement.
Unlike other parts of our build, you cannot enhance External Components. These are random (RNG) based drops only when you are at max level. Therefore, they are the finishing touches on your build. Prioritize the following stats for External Components:
Below is a list and chart of the best stats for yourExternal Component Parts bonuses for Hailey:
First Bonus:
Second Bonus
Hailey’s Story in the First Descendant
“Take out every enemy in every mission, and everyone returns alive.”
The 33rd Sniper Squad’s operational mantra has never been followed, since the reality is that half of the unit is KIA in every operation. Perhaps that is why rumors of jinxes began to spread throughout the unit. The first, missions always go wrong. The second, someone will always be detected, and they’ll always die. The exact opposite of their operational mantra. These chilling jinxes also reached the ears of the youngest member of the unit, Hailey Scott.
Hoping that these jinxes could be broken, Hailey’s 33rd Sniper Squad and the 16th Recon Squad headed out to the Snowfields in search of the Vulgus Fortress. Thanks to the Recon Squad’s efforts, Hailey and her sniper squad were able to set up a vantage point and wait at a good location. Now all they had to do was launch a reconnaissance stealth drone. But here was when the first jinx struck. The Vulgus troops, who were armed with thermal sensors that could easily detect human body temperatures, spotted them. The Vulgus immediately pinpointed the Recon Squad’s location and began attacking them. Hailey and her sniper squad quickly pointed their rifles at the enemy and waited for their targets to walk into the crosshairs amid the ensuing chaos.
“Ugh…! 33rd Sniper Squad… cease fire and retreat! RUN!”
Hailey’s Story Continued
Hailey couldn’t believe her ears. She couldn’t turn her back on her allies who were still alive and fighting to the bitter end. This wasn’t what she became a soldier for. She’d never disobeyed her superiors before, but this time, she decided, she would. Hailey straightened her position, closed her eyes, and recited the operational mantra like a prayer.
“Take out every enemy in every mission, and everyone returns alive.”“Hit every enemy locked in the crosshairs. And we’ll all return alive.”
After a few deep breaths that dispersed in the wind, Hailey opened her eyes calmly. Her icy cold eyes locked on the enemy with pinpoint precision. Even the sounds around her seemed to be frozen. One shot, then another shot. Each time Haley squeezed the trigger, an enemy crumbled like bent grass. The enemies panicked and turned up their thermal sensors, but they couldn’t find her. And so, the Vulgus forces were wiped out by a single unseen sniper.
Not only was it a victory, but it was also the moment when the squad’s operational mantra, which had never been achieved, was finally accomplished by Hailey, their youngest member. When asked by her superiors how it felt to be the exception to the rule, she smiled and said, “I’m happy. It happened just like our operational mantra says.” With that, everyone including Hailey who was deployed in the operation managed to return safe and sound.
The Best Hailey Build Guide for the First Descendant Story Conclusion
Upon reviewing the operation report, HQ wondered how Hailey was able to snipe so many Vulgus without being detected by their thermal sensors. Even if her body temperature did drop, it wouldn’t have been low enough to evade detection by the thermal sensors. It didn’t make sense unless she had Arche. Eventually, Hailey was tested for an Arche factor, and was found to have ‘Supercooling Arche’ abilities that enable her to drop her body temperature to extreme levels and fire Arche clusters instead of bullets. So, Hailey left the sniper squad that she had grown so fond of and officially became a Descendant. But even as a Descendant, Hailey vowed to keep the legend alive, still reciting the 33rd Sniper Squad’s operational mantra.
Build Summary – The Best Hailey Guide for the First Descendant
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