Is Keres good?

Keres is strong, but she is a specialist. Game8 ranks her S as a main character and A as a squadmate, while Gacha.gg places her in A tier, 8th of 14. Her kit revolves around raising Dragon damage, so her value depends on your squad. Kanima's pre-launch view is that her personal damage is low, though launch numbers are to be confirmed.

Detail	Keres
Rarity	SSR
Element	Dragon
Class	Disruptor
Weapon	Dual Blades
Title	Silent Frenzy
Main ranking (Game8)	S
Squadmate ranking (Game8)	A
Overall ranking (Gacha.gg)	A

Her Awareness trait raises Dragon damage against Weak Points by 40%. Demon Mode also keeps her from being knocked back, so she can stay on a weak point. That rewards precise part targeting, so lock on to a weak spot at the start of every hunt.

Best build

Keres wants Dragon damage above all, and Game8 builds around maxing Dragon Damage Up. Mix Bone, Diablos and Hornetaur armor to reach the maximum level. That grants +50 Dragon Attack and +28% Dragon Damage, which can reach +70% against Radiant monsters. High Adventure Rank requirements mean elemental damage is the one skill you can fully max for now.

The recommended pieces are:

• Weapon: Blacksteel Twins, a Dragon Dual Blades.
• Head and legs: Bone Helm IV and Bone Greaves IV.
• Chest: Diablos Mail III.
• Arms and waist: Hornetaur Vambraces II and Hornetaur Coil III.

Game8 lists Blacksteel Twins II in its build table, but its text recommends Blacksteel Twins III at around AR38. The exact tier is to be confirmed, so use the best version you can upgrade. Dragonbone Twinblades offer slightly more damage but no Affinity.

Early gear progression

You do not need the final set straight away. Game8 suggests staging your gear by Adventure Rank, which keeps materials focused. Early Dragon Damage Up comes from Bone armor, so that is your first real target.

Adventure Rank	Gear plan
AR 1-6	Guild set and Guild Crimson Crest Dual Blades (Dragon) I
AR 6-20	Bone Helm, Mail and Greaves, with two Guild pieces for Guild's Comeback
AR 28+	Dragonbone Twinblades, Hornetaur Vambraces and Coil

Raise the rarity of this gear as you progress until Dragon Damage Up reaches its maximum. Keep Bone Helm, Mail and Greaves together in the middle stage, since they give up to three levels of the skill. Craft Bone pieces as soon as you reach AR7.

Best team

Keres belongs in a full mono-Dragon team, because her Ultimate provides a total 25% damage increase that only applies to Dragon attacks. Game8's recommended squad is below. Dragon users are limited right now to Pyro, Arkaya and a Fated Adventurer with a Dragon weapon. That makes this lineup simple to plan.

Role	Adventurer
Main DPS	Pyro
Sub-DPS	Fated Adventurer (Dragon weapon)
Disruptor	Keres
Support	Arkaya

Give your Fated Adventurer a Dragon weapon, and choose Disruptor for its flash pod or Assault for more damage. Game8 recommends the Heavy Bowgun for its versatility and ranged damage. Haze can replace a support because her buffs work across all elements. Madelyn also fits, with a 10% squad damage buff and healing.

Best Buddy and Visage

Devu is the best Buddy for Keres, because she can fully use its passive. After combo damage, Devu raises Dragon damage by 15% for 10 seconds, and it adds 2% damage for the whole squad. Nako and Barim are good alternatives if you are focused on Suppression. Nako raises squad damage against suppressed monsters, and Barim extends suppression time.

Our two sources recommend different Visages, so pick the one that matches your role. Both are valid, and which is stronger is to be confirmed.

• Support focus: Pink Rathian core with Ink of Combat (Game8).
• Dragon focus: Radiant Odogaron core with Ink of Dragon (Gacha.gg).

Ink of Combat gives 5% Affinity at two pieces, and 6.5% squad damage for 60 seconds at four when an Ultimate inflicts a debuff. Ink of Dragon gives 5% Dragon damage at two pieces, and 24% for 60 seconds after an Ultimate at four. Game8 recommends Affinity, Ultimate Charge Rate and Dragon attack as your main stats.

Insight and Engraving priority

Take Bone Spikes: Extended first, because it adds 15 seconds to the debuff. Bone Spikes: Vulnerability is second, raising the extra Dragon damage against spiked monsters by 25%. Rapid Pulse and Pursuit Combo come next, for Unwavering on Wolf Howl and a 60% boost to Bone Piercer. Game8 treats her as a support, so personal damage Insights are lower priority.

For Engravings, Game8's order is Core Passive, then Skill Boost, Elemental Specialization, Core Attribute and Ultimate.

How to play Keres

Keres alternates between building gauge and spending it in Demon Mode. She needs at least 40% Demon Gauge to enter. Start every hunt by locking on to a weak spot, then follow this rotation:

1. Use Wolf Howl (Skill 3) and Chain Slash to reach 40% gauge.
2. Enter Demon Mode with Skill 1, or parry with Evasive Fang (Skill 2) for a faster start.
3. Use Wolf Howl three times, or parry, to unlock Bone Piercer.
4. Land Bone Piercer, her highest-damage attack.
5. Use Bone Frenzy when the monster is about to be immobilized.

Use her Ultimate before your teammates use theirs. It staggers the monster, applies Suppression and places a bone spike on the targeted part for 30 seconds. Dragon damage taken rises 13%, with another 25% at the spike location. Darker red damage numbers show that you are hitting the spiked part.

Evasive Fang can parry during Wolf Howl I and II, which also keeps your combo going. Wolf Howl III blocks other skills during its animation, so use it only when you are safe. Bone Piercer tracks your locked-on part, and Game8 suggests avoiding directional input unless you need to redirect it.

Who is Keres?

Keres carries the title "Silent Frenzy". She was orphaned young, faced an Odogaron alone, and survived. An unknown blacksmith's kindness and the guild's commander, Freya, brought her back from that isolated life. Gacha.gg's profile describes her as wary of others and fond of painting.

Her design fits this past. Trailers show her attacking with her braid as well as her claws, and Kanima describes her moveset as a spiral slicer style. Kanima calls her gameplay really good, but wants a personal damage buff so she is more than a Dragon buffer. Trailer impressions come from before launch, so her live balance is to be confirmed.

How to get Keres

Keres is a Standard pool character, so she is not limited. You can pull her on the Standard banner, on a Rotating banner when she is featured, or as an off-banner result on limited banners. She can also be chosen as your 300-pull selection on the Standard banner.

Game8 adds that she is a guaranteed reward on your first game subscription. That reward is worth confirming in-game before you buy. Her outfits include Claws of Crimson and Spiked Punk, according to Game8.