Modifiers are stage mechanics that change how a run plays out in Anime Expeditions. Some rewrite the rules of the whole stage, disabling tools you normally rely on or buffing every enemy at once. Others attach to specific enemy groups and float above their heads when they spawn. Reading them correctly before a fight decides which Units you bring and where you place them.
Quick answer: Modifiers split into two types. Game Modifiers apply to the entire stage, and Enemy Modifiers apply only to enemies that spawn with them. You can see every active Modifier listed under a stage’s effects before you press start, so plan your team around them first.
Game Modifiers that change the whole stage
Game Modifiers rewrite the core rules for an entire stage. They can strip out farming, disable Traits, speed up every enemy, or shift elemental resistances on a timer. You cannot remove these effects, so the fix is always team composition. Most show up in Story stages, while a few only appear inside the Expedition gamemode.
| Game Modifier | Effect | Units to counter |
|---|---|---|
 Boss Waves | Every enemy is treated as a boss. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk), Cursed Student (True Love), Puppet (Telekinetic) |
| Cards Disabled | Blood Money and Bounty Hunter Cards cannot be used. | – |
 Mirror | Enemies copy your Units’ Elements as resistances. | 8th Sword (Berserk), Puppet (Telekinetic), Toy Maker |
 No Anvils | Stat Anvils are disabled. | – |
 No Farms | Farm Units cannot be deployed. | – |
 No Repair | Repair Hammer cannot be used. | – |
 No Research Tree | Research Tree upgrades are disabled. | – |
 No Tomes | Trait Tomes cannot be used. | – |
 Resistance | Enemy Elemental Resistances rotate every 30 seconds (Flame > Hydro > Gale > Terra > Light > Storm > Dark). | Mixed Elements: Shadow (Dark), Flame Emperor (Flame), Elf Mage (Storm), Water Princess (Hydro), Lady Giant (Terra) |
 Shielded | All enemies spawn with ten Shields. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk), String Demon (Awakened) |
 Short Range | All allied Units lose 25% of their attack range. | Elf Mage (Unleashed), Shadow (Divine), String Demon (Awakened), Flame Emperor |
 Speedy | Enemies move 50% faster. | Puppet (Telekinetic), Toy Maker, Reaper (Released), True Saint (Holy) |
 Traitless | All Unit Traits are disabled. | – |
 Upgrade Cap | Only 25 total Unit upgrades can be purchased during the stage. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk), Cursed Student (True Love) |
The restriction Modifiers with no listed counter (No Anvils, No Farms, No Repair, No Research Tree, No Tomes, Traitless, Cards Disabled) can’t be played around with a specific Unit. Adjust your economy and upgrade plan instead. For example, No Farms means you lean on high starting-cost carries rather than income Units, and Traitless means you value raw stat lines over Trait bonuses.
Enemy Modifiers that spawn on specific enemies
Enemy Modifiers only affect the enemies carrying them, and their icons sit above the enemy during a stage. They range from simple speed and health swaps to revive mechanics, crowd-control immunity, and auras that buff nearby enemies. Because they are targeted, you counter them by mixing damage types, spreading placements, and bringing crowd control or damage-over-time where it matters.
| Enemy Modifier | Effect | Best counters |
|---|---|---|
 Sprinter | Moves 45% faster but has 20% less health. | Puppet (Telekinetic), Toy Maker, Reaper (Released) |
 Tank | Moves 20% slower but has 20% more health. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk), Cursed Student (True Love) |
 Summoner | Summons up to five enemies at its location every five seconds. | Shadow (Divine), String Demon (Awakened), Flame Emperor (Reincarnate) |
 Explosive | On death, explodes in a 10-range radius and stuns Units for two seconds. | Long-range Units like Elf Mage (Unleashed) and Shadow (Divine) |
 Splitter | On death, splits into three enemies, each with 33% health. | Flame Emperor (Reincarnate), Hollow (Blaze), String Demon (Awakened) |
| Armored | Takes 33% less damage from full AoE attacks. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk), Cursed Student (True Love) |
| Reinforced | Takes 30% less damage from all sources. | Shadow (Divine), Puppet (Telekinetic), 8th Sword (Berserk) |
 Regen I | Regenerates 1% max health per second. | Shadow (Divine), Cursed Student (True Love), Crimson (Brother) |
| Regen II | Regenerates 3% max health per second. | Shadow (Divine), Cursed Student (True Love), Crimson (Brother) |
| Regen III | Regenerates 5% max health per second. | Shadow (Divine), Cursed Student (True Love), Crimson (Brother) |
| Regen IV | Regenerates 8% max health per second. | Shadow (Divine), Cursed Student (True Love), Crimson (Brother) |
 Shield | Protected by an attack-absorbing shield. | String Demon (Awakened), Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk) |
 Immunity | Immune to all soft and hard crowd control. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk), Flame Emperor (Reincarnate) |
 Momentum | Gains 2% movement speed per second, up to 50%. | Puppet (Telekinetic), Toy Maker, Reaper (Released) |
 Burrowing | Every eight seconds, burrows for two seconds and becomes untargetable. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk) |
| Zombie | Revives with 50% health and drops 50% less Yen when killed. | Hollow (Blaze), Flame Emperor (Reincarnate), String Demon (Awakened) |
 Zombify | Periodically converts nearby enemies into Zombified enemies. | Shadow (Divine), Flame Emperor (Reincarnate), String Demon (Awakened) |
 Zombified | Revived enemy that drops no Yen when killed. | Any strong AoE Unit like String Demon (Awakened) or Hollow (Blaze) |
 Commander | Grants nearby enemies +20% movement speed and +20% health. | Shadow (Divine), Cursed Student (True Love), 8th Sword (Berserk) |
 Research Project | Grants progress toward your active Expedition Project. | Any high-DPS Unit to remove it quickly |
 Soldier | Gains +20% movement speed while near a Commander. | Flame Emperor (Reincarnate), Hollow (Blaze), String Demon (Awakened) |
 Veil | Grants a 200% damage-absorbing AoE shield to nearby enemies. | Shadow (Divine), String Demon (Awakened), 8th Sword (Berserk) |
 Tartaros | Every ten seconds, consumes a nearby Basic enemy and gains Regen I for ten seconds. | Shadow (Divine), Puppet (Telekinetic) |
 Death | Grants nearby enemies a stacking +20% permanent speed boost; crowd control resets the stacks. | Puppet (Telekinetic), Toy Maker, Reaper (Released) |
 Sword | Respawns up to two times unless killed while under a DoT effect. | Hollow (Blaze), Flame Emperor (Reincarnate) |
 Dawn | Enemies spawned by Splitter or Summoner have 99% reduced health and five Shields. | String Demon (Awakened), Hollow (Blaze), Flame Emperor (Reincarnate) |
 Stunner | Every 15 seconds, stuns the three nearest Units for five seconds. | Elf Mage (Unleashed), Shadow (Divine); spread out placements |
| Zone Debuff | Applies a debuff within a specific area. | Long-range Units and careful placement |
 Transformer | At 50% health, transforms into a second phase at full health. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk), Cursed Student (True Love) |
 Bulwark | Every ten seconds, becomes immune to damage for three seconds. | Shadow (Divine), String Demon (Awakened) |
 Status Cleanse | Every ten seconds, removes all crowd control from enemies. | Shadow (Divine), Cursed Student (True Love), 8th Sword (Berserk) |
 Retaliation Counter | After every 20 hits, stuns all Units for two seconds. | Shadow (Divine), Cursed Student (True Love), Crimson (Brother) |
 Greed | Every ten seconds, steals 10% HP from nearby enemies. | Shadow (Divine), Puppet (Telekinetic) |
 Cage | Cages a random Unit, disabling its attacks, passives, and abilities. | Bring several DPS Units instead of one carry |
| Fear | Every 15 seconds, cuts nearby Units’ DMG, SPA, and RNG by 10% for ten seconds. | Shadow (Divine), 8th Sword (Berserk), Puppet (Telekinetic) |
 Warlock | Grants nearby enemies +1 Shield and +10% movement speed every five seconds. | Shadow (Divine), String Demon (Awakened), 8th Sword (Berserk) |
How Enemy Resistances work
Enemy Resistances are a special Modifier type found in select gamemodes. Unlike a normal Enemy Modifier that sticks to one enemy, resistances apply to every enemy on the map and cut the damage they take from one Element.
When the Resistance Game Modifier is active, enemies resist a single Element at a time and the protected Element rotates every 30 seconds in a fixed order: Flame > Hydro > Gale > Terra > Light > Storm > Dark. While that Element is active, Units of that Element deal reduced damage until the cycle moves to the next one. The practical answer is a team that spreads across multiple Elements so you always have a Unit hitting for full damage. A Psychic Archetype Unit such as Toy Maker also helps smooth out these swings.
The short version: check the stage’s effects before you commit a team, treat Game Modifiers as fixed rules you build around, and treat Enemy Modifiers as targets you handle with the right damage types, spacing, and crowd control. When a stage stacks resistances, revives, or shields on top of speed buffs, a varied roster beats a single carry every time.
