Hoyoverse is breaking new ground with its upcoming game by letting us play as full-on anthropomorphic animals, one of which is Zenless Zone Zero’s Lycaon. As his name suggests, he’s an elegant-looking wolf man with a grudge against grime and some super-powered robot legs. We can’t wait to find out more about him and how he fits into the game’s story.
If you’re gearing up for the Zenless Zone Zero release date like we are, make sure to check out our comprehensive guides covering all of the Zenless Zone Zero characters revealed so far, the Zenless Zone Zero tier list, and whether we’ll be getting Zenless Zone Zero codes (spoiler alert: it’s highly likely).
Here’s everything you need to know about Zenless Zone Zero’s Lycaon:
What is the best Lycaon build?
Lycaon is an S-tier character that deals a huge amount of ice-infused strike damage using his robotically-enhanced legs in combat. Lycaon gains invulnerability when he uses his special skill or his dodge, allowing him to avoid some damage during his close-up combat.
His best W Engine is The Restraint, but anything to bring up his attack also works. You can also increase Lycaon’s damage by having another ice element in the squad, along with a strike and a slash agent.
Each character in Zenless Zone Zero can equip a W Engine, akin to Honkai Star Rail light cones, and six disk drives that function like Genshin Impact’s artifacts and Honkai Star Rail’s relics. We recommend equipping Lycaon with a full set of Polar Metal disc drives to boost his ice damage and reduce the enemy’s ice resistance. In the other two slots, you can choose to boost his impact with a set like Shockstar Disco or Unicorn Electro, or increase his attack with a set like Assassin’s Ballad or Noisy Pop.
What is Lycaon’s best W-Engine?
The best W Engine for Lycaon is The Restrained, an S-rank Engine tailored specifically to his kit. It even looks like his outfit. This W Engine increases his ice damage. However, it is hard to come by, so we also recommend a [Reverb] Mark III.
| W Engine | Effect |
| The Restrained | Bonus stat: increases attack Effect: Lycaon’s ice damage increases by 25%. When a basic attack deals ice damage, the skill deals an additional 15% damage and daze |
| [Reverb] Mark III | Bonus stat: increases crit rate Effect: Damage dealt by basic attacks and special attacks increases by 16% |
What are the best disc drives for Lycaon?
The best four-piece Disc Drive set for Lycaon is Polar Metal, which boosts his ice damage and decreases his targets’ ice resistance, making him hit a whole lot harder.
In the other two slots, you can go with either two pieces of an impact set like Unicorn Electro or Shockstar Disco, or two pieces of an attack set like Assassin’s Ballad or Noisy Pop. The impact and attack sets also work as a four-piece placeholder if you haven’t unlocked Polar Metal yet.
| Disc drive set | Effect |
| Polar Metal | Two equipped: increases ice damage by 10% Four equipped: upon hitting a frozen enemy or triggering shatter, the struck target’s ice resistance decreases by 28% for eight seconds. This effect doesn’t stack |
| Shockstar Disco | Two equipped: increases impact by 6% Four equipped: when an enemy is stunned, the entire squad’s attack increases by 20% for ten seconds. This effect can trigger once every 15 seconds and doesn’t stack |
| Unicorn Electro | Two equipped: increases impact by 6% Four equipped: increases the daze inflicted by Lycaon’s attacks by 6% |
| Noisy Pop | Two equipped: increases attack by 10% Four equipped: increases damage dealt by basic attacks by 15% |
| Assassin’s Ballad | Two equipped: increases attack by 10% Four equipped: Lycaon’s basic attacks deal 20% more damage and an additional 12% upon defeating an enemy. This effect can stack up to three times and lasts for 15 seconds. Repeated triggers reset the duration |
What are Lycaon’s skills?
Here are all of Lycaon’s attacks and skills. If you want to see him in action, check out our gameplay showcase video at the top of this build guide.
Lycaon’s attacks:
| Skill | Effect |
| Basic attack – Moon Hunter | Press the basic attack button to activate. Lycaon unleashes up to five strikes, dealing physical damage. Hold down the basic attack button to charge up, increasing the damage and dealing ice damage. |
| Special attack – Chase of the Hunt | Press the special attack button to activate. Unleashes a series of strikes, dealing ice damage. Hold down the button to charge up, increasing the move’s power. Lycaon’s anti-interrupt level increases while using this skill |
| EX special attack – Thrill of the Hunt | When Lycaon has enough energy, press the special attack button to activate. He unleashes a series of powerful strikes, dealing ice damage. Hold the button to charge up, consuming some energy, to increase the power. Lycaon is invulnerable while using this skill |
Lycaon’s dodges:
| Skill | Effect |
| Dodge – Suitable Positioning | Press the dodge button to evade an attack with a rapid dodge. Lycaon is invulnerable while using this skill |
| Dash attack – Keep it Clean | Press the basic attack button during a dodge to activate. Lycaon slides forward, launching a series of strikes dealing physical damage |
| Dodge counter – Etiquette Manual | Press the basic attack button during a perfect dodge to activate. Lycaon strikes enemies in front of him and deals ice damage. Lycaon is invulnerable while using this skill |
Lycaon’s chain attacks:
| Skill | Effect |
| Chain attack – As You Wish | When a chain attack triggers, select Lycaon to activate. He unleashes a series of powerful strikes at enemies in a small area in front of him, dealing massive ice damage. Lycaon is invulnerable while using this skill |
| Ultimate – Mission Complete | When his Decibel Rating is at maximum, press the ultimate button to activate. Lycaon unleashes multiple powerful attacks at enemies in a large area, dealing huge ice damage. The daze dealt to targets increases by 10%. Lycaon is invulnerable while using this skill |
Lycaon’s core skills:
| Skill | Effect |
| Core passive – Metallic Paws (unlocked at agent level 15) | When Lycaon completes charging of a basic attack, the attack deals 6% more daze |
| Additional ability – Elegant Predator (unlocked at agent level 15) | When there are at least two ice agents in the squad: -When Lycaon uses a chain attack, the entire squad regenerates two energy. When there is at least one strike and one slash agent in the squad: -When Lycaon’s dodge counter hits an enemy, the next EX special attack deals 22% more daze |
| Reactive assist – Wolf Pack | When the character in combat gets knocked back, press the swap button to activate. Lycaon strikes enemies in front, dealing ice damage. Lycaon is invulnerable while using this skill |
| Defensive assist – Disrupted Hunt | When the character in combat is about to be attacked, press the swap button to activate. Lycaon parries the enemy’s attack and inflicts a large amount of daze. Lycaon is invulnerable while using this skill |
| Assist follow-up – Vengeful Counterattack | Press the special attack button after a defensive assist to activate. Lycaon creates an icicle in front of him that strikes all enemies within its range, dealing ice damage. Lycaon is invulnerable while using this skill |
What are Lycaon’s talents?
Talents in Zenless Zone Zero act like constellations in Genshin Impact, and eidolons in Honkai Star Rail. Essentially, if you pull another copy of Lycaon, you get an item called an Agent Profile: Lycaon. This unlocks a talent for him. Here are the potential talents you can unlock.
| Talent | Effect |
| A – Full Moon Momentum | When Lycaon completes charging a special attack or EX special attack, the attack deals 10% more daze. This can trigger once every 3.6 seconds |
| B – Energy Feedback | When stunning an enemy or triggering a squad member’s chain attack, Lycaon gains 3.6 energy. This can trigger once every second |
| C – Attendant Training | All skill levels increase by two |
| D – Graceful Demeanor | If Lycaon gets attacked while charging or during a charged attack, he gains a shield equal to 7.5% of his maximum HP, lasting for five seconds. Lycaon’s anti-interrupt increases for the shield’s duration. This can trigger once every 15 seconds |
| E – Alpha Nature | All skill levels increase by two |
| F – Ruthless Hunter | When Lycaon’s charged attacks hit an enemy, the target suffers 5% increased daze. This can stack up to five times and lasts for 12 seconds. You can only gain one stack per skill use, and repeated triggers reset the duration |
What are Lycaon’s skill enhancement materials?
To upgrade Lycaon’s skills, you need some freeze chips. You can buy these at the 141 Store on the main street – just look for the bangboos out front. These chips come in basic, advanced, and specialized rarities, the later of which you’ll need the higher your skill gets.
What are Lycaon’s promotion materials?
Similar to Honkai Star Rail and Genshin Impact, Zenless Zone Zero requires you to ‘promote’ your characters every few levels. In Lycaon’s case, you need strike seals to do this. You can earn these in VR training.
Who is Lycaon?
Von Lycaon is a wolf man and a member of Victoria Housekeeping, a human resource dispatch agency and faction in New Eridu. Like the other members of this faction, he dresses somewhat like a Victorian butler from our world but with a futuristic twist.
As you might expect from a canine companion, he’s loyal and trustworthy and is described as a solid support for any team. He’s also extremely wise and rational but has been known to give in to his feral nature when faced with danger.
Who are Lycaon’s voice actors?
Lycaon’s Japanese voice actor is Kobayashi Chikahiro, who you might recognize from Final Fantasy VII Remake and Cyberpunk 2077, as well as Beastars where he voices another wolf man, Legoshi. Lycaon’s Chinese voice actor is Yuhang Wang, who’s best known outside of China as the voice of Honkai Star Rail’s Svarog. When we find out who his other voice actors are, we’ll pop them here.
That’s it for our Zenless Zone Zero Lycaon guide. There’s a ton of great Hoyo content to explore before visiting New Eridu, so make sure you check out our Genshin Impact tier list, Honkai Star Rail tier list, Genshin Impact codes, and Honkai Star Rail codes guides.