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Billy build | Zenless Zone Zero

Zenless Zone Zero’s Billy is one of the first characters we meet in New Eridu, so let’s look at what he can do and how to build him.

Zenless Zone Zero's Billy pointing a gun towards you next to text that says "ZZZ BILLY"

Zenless Zone Zero’s Billy casts a striking figure with spiky white hair, robotic features, and a stunning red leather jacket. But what do we know about this gun-wielding guy? Read on to find out how to build your free copy of Billy Kid with the best W-Engines and drive discs, and see how he slots into a team.

Don’t forget to grab all the Zenless Zone Zero codes for free tapes and denny, then see which characters we recommend pulling from the next Zenless Zone Zero banner in our Zenless Zone Zero codes. Plus, see what’s coming up in the next Zenless Zone Zero update and Zenless Zone Zero events.

Here’s everything you need to know about Zenless Zone Zero’s Billy.

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What is the best Billy build?

Billy is an A-rank attack specialty agent that deals pierce damage with the physical element. He excels in ranged combat and is capable of hitting multiple targets at a time, honing in on one enemy, or dealing continuous damage with his pistols.

We recommend equipping Billy with his signature A-rank W-Engine, Starlight Engine Replica, to boost his physical damage. As for drive discs, we suggest going with a four-piece set of Woodpecker Electro and a two-piece set of Fanged Metal to boost his crit and physical damage in battle.

Best W-Engine Starlight Engine Replica
Best drive discs Four-piece – Woodpecker Electro
Two-piece – Fanged Metal
Main stats Pen ratio > physical damage bonus > crit rate > crit damage
Sub-stats Crit rate > crit damage > attack

You can unleash some hefty showers of bullets upon enemies when his Decibel Rating is high enough, and Billy can provide some good attacks when swapped in to cover other squad members with an evasive assist. Billy gets some extra buffs if you have him in a squad with another physical damage dealer or member of the Cunning Hares, so keep that in mind when selecting your team – Zenless Zone Zero’s Nicole and Zenless Zone Zero’s Nekomata work very well with him.

What are Billy’s best W-Engines?

In true Billy Kid fashion, the best W-Engine for him is his signature A-rank, Starlight Engine Replica. This boosts his physical damage by a hefty percentage and doesn’t require you to be up close to enemies, so you can hit them from far away.

If you have Billy’s fourth mindscape cinema, the Starlight Engine Replica may not be the best choice as the buff triggers when Billy is close to an enemy, not over six meters away.

If you don’t have Starlight Engine Replica, you can also use the Starlight Engine to give you a boost when dodging or using a quick assist. Alternatively, if you find yourself with a spare Steel Cushion – Nekomata’s signature engine – you can equip this on Billy, too, but this requires you to be behind the target to get extra damage. The best choice of engine really depends on how you wish to play him.

W-Engine Effect
Starlight Engine Replica (A-rank) Increases Billy’s physical damage for eight seconds after hitting an enemy that is at least six meters away, with a basic or dash attack
The Brimstone (S-rank) When hitting an enemy with a basic or dash attack, or a dodge counter, Billy’s attack increases for eight seconds, stacking up to eight times. This can trigger once every 0.5 seconds
Starlight Engine (A-rank) Launching a dodge counter or quick assist increases Billy’s attack for 12 seconds
Steel Cushion (S-rank) Increases Billy’s physical damage by 20%. His damage increases a further 35% when attacking enemies from behind
Street Superstar (A-rank) When a squad member launches a chain attack, Billy gains a stack of Charge, which can stack three times. When activating his ultimate, he consumes all three stacks – each stack increases his ultimate’s damage by 15%

What are the best drive discs for Billy?

You can equip Billy with six drive discs, and we suggest you aim for a four-piece set of Woodpecker Electro with a two-piece set of Fanged Metal for the crit rate and physical damage buffs. Alternatively, you can flip this and choose a four-piece set of Fanged Metal with two pieces of Woodpecker Electro, if you like.

Drive disc Effect
Woodpecker Electro Two equipped: Increases Billy’s crit rate by 8%
Four equipped: Triggering a crit hit with a basic attack, dodge counter, or EX special attack increases his damage by 9% for eight seconds. The buffs from the different skills are calculated separately
Fanged Metal Two equipped: Increases Billy’s physical damage by 10%
Four equipped: Whenever a squad member inflicts Assault on an enemy, Billy deals 35% more damage on the target for 12 seconds
Freedom Blues Two equipped: Increases Billy’s anomaly proficiency by 30
Four equipped: When an EX special attack hits an enemy, it reduces the target’s anomaly buildup resistance to physical damage by 20% for eight seconds
Puffer Electro Two equipped: Increases Billy’s PEN ratio
Four equipped:
 Increases Billy’s ultimate damage by 20%. Using his ultimate increases his attack by 15% for 20 seconds

Billy stat recommendations

These are the best main and sub-stats to aim for:

Main stats

  • Crit rate / damage
  • Physical damage
  • Pen ratio

Sub-stats

  • Crit rate / damage
  • Attack
  • Pen ratio

What are Billy’s skills?

Here are all of Billy’s skills in combat, including the passive bonuses he gets from certain types of teammates.

Billy’s attacks:

Skill Effect
Basic attack – Full Firepower

Performs a piercing attack, dealing physical damage. Repeatedly pressing or holding the button enters Crouching Shot, which extends the attack duration.

Drag the joystick during Crouching Shot to launch Rolling Shot and change Billy’s position, dealing physical damage.

Stop holding or pressing during Crouching Shot to launch Finishing Shot, dealing physical damage to enemies in front of Billy

Special attack – Stand Still Billy performs up to three piercing attacks in a line, dealing physical damage. His anti-interrupt level increases during this skill
EX special attack – Clearance Time When the EX attack is ready, release it to launch a powerful piercing attack in a line in front of Billy, dealing massive physical damage. He becomes invulnerable while using this skill

Billy’s dodges:

Skill Effect
Dodge – Risky Business Billy dodges an attack and becomes invulnerable temporarily
Dash attack – Starlight Sanction Drag the joystick during a dodge and press the basic attack button to launch a piercing attack at enemies within a large area, dealing physical damage. When not dragging the joystick, press the basic attack button to launch a piercing attack at enemies in a line
Dodge counter – Fair Fight Press the basic attack button during a perfect dodge to pierce and damage enemies in front, dealing physical damage. Billy is invulnerable during this attack

Zenless Zone Zero Billy during his ultimate animation holding two guns

Billy’s combo attacks:

Skill Effect
Quick assist – Power of Teamwork When an on-field character launches, Billy can then unleash a piercing attack at enemies, dealing physical damage. Billy is invulnerable during this skill
Evasive assist – Flash Spin When the on-field character is about to get hit, swap to Billy to evade the attack and activate Vital View. Billy is invulnerable during this skill
Assist follow-up – Fatal Shot After an evasive assist, use a basic attack to activate Fatal Shot. This pierces enemies in a large area with physical damage. Billy is invulnerable during this skill
Chain attack – Starlight Mirage When a chain attack triggers, swap to Billy to unleash a powerful piercing attack at surrounding enemies in a large area, dealing heavy physical damage. Billy is invulnerable during this skill
Chain attack ultimate – Starlight Sparkle When his Decibel Rating is at maximum, use this skill to unleash a powerful piercing attack at enemies in a large area, dealing massive physical damage. Billy is invulnerable during this skill

Billy’s passive skills:

Skill Effect
Core passive – Steady Shot Billy’s damage increases by 25% when he enters Crouching Shot during a basic attack. If he moves or is hit, the effect ends
Additional ability – Team Starlight When another member of the squad is a physical damage dealer or member of the Cunning Hares, Billy’s ultimate damage (after using a chain attack) increases by 50%, which can stack twice. This resets after you use his ultimate

What are Billy’s promotion materials?

As you build Billy, you’ll want to level him up to get his stats higher. Every ten levels, you need to promote him using the materials below. You can earn offense certification seals via the combat simulation – agent promotion combat challenges.

Here are all of Billy’s promotion materials:

Level Denny and materials
20 24k denny and four basic offense certification seals
30 56k denny and 12 advanced offense certification seals
40 120k denny and 20 advanced offense certification seals
50 200k denny and ten pioneer’s certification seals
60 400k denny and 20 pioneer’s certification seals

What are Billy’s mindscape cinemas?

If you get a second (or third, or fourth, etc) copy of Billy as you pull for characters, you can unlock his mindscape cinemas. If you’re familiar with Hoyoverse games, think of them as the Zenless Zone Zero version of Genshin Impact’s constellations or Honkai Star Rail’s eidolons.

Here are all of Billy’s mindscape cinemas:

Mindscape cinema Effect
Dazzling Entrance When Billy hits an enemy with a dash attack or dodge counter, he gains an additional 2.7 energy. This can trigger once every five seconds
Roaming Gunslinger Billy’s dodge counter damage increases by 25%. Rolling Shots during his basic attacks count as dodges, making him invulnerable during skill activation, and able to trigger perfect dodges. When a Rolling Shot triggers a perfect dodge, it automatically follows up with a dodge counter
Teachings of the Starlight Knights Basic attack, dodge, assist, special attack, and chain attack levels increase by two
Starlight Ballistics When Billy hits an enemy with an EX special attack, the skill’s crit rate increases based on how far he is from the enemy. The closer he is, the greater the effect, up to a maximum increase of 32%
Lost Technical Construct Basic attack, dodge, assist, special attack, and chain attack levels increase by two
Starlight Hero When Billy accumulates ten hits on enemies or triggers a perfect dodge, his damage increases by 6%. This can stack up to five times. The effect resets if an enemy knocks him back or launches him

Zenless Zone Zero Billy holding his hands up with blush marks on his face

What are Billy’s core skill enhancement materials?

To get Billy’s core skills enhanced, you’ll need a few ferocious grips, plenty of higher dimensional data items, and a stack of denny. You can obtain higher dimensional data: ethereal pursuit from the expert challenge game mode, while the ferocious grips come from the notorious hunt game mode.

Here are the materials you need for Billy’s core skill enhancement:

Required level Denny and materials
15 5k denny
25 12k denny and two higher dimensional data: ethereal pursuit
35 28k denny and four higher dimensional data: ethereal pursuit
45 60k denny, nine higher dimensional data: ethereal pursuit, and two ferocious grips
55 100k denny, 15 higher dimensional data: ethereal pursuit, and three ferocious grips
60 200k denny, 30 higher dimensional data: ethereal pursuit, and four ferocious grips

What are Billy’s skill enhancement materials?

You can also enhance Billy’s regular combat skills – a very important part of building him – using physical chips and denny. To cap out his skills, you also need a few hamster cage passes. You can get physical chips through the combat simulation – agent skills combat challenge, while hamster cage passes come from events or the New Eridu City Fund.

Here are the materials you need to enhance Billy’s skills:

Required level Denny and materials
15 2k denny and two basic physical chips
15 3k denny and two basic physical chips
25 6k denny and two advanced physical chips
25 9k denny and three advanced physical chips
35 12k denny and four advanced physical chips
35 18k denny and six advanced physical chips
45 45k denny and five specialized physical chips
45 67.5k denny and eight specialized physical chips
55 90k denny and ten specialized physical chips
55 112.5k denny and 12 specialized physical chips
60 135k denny, 15 specialized physical chips, and one hamster cage pass

There you have it – how to build Billy in Zenless Zone Zero. Next, why not look at our other character builds like Zenless Zone Zero’s Anby, Zenless Zone Zero’s Nicole, Zenless Zone Zero’s Ben, and Zenless Zone Zero’s Anton?