Zenless Zone Zero’s 2.6 marketing cycle has formally pulled Aria out of the shadows and onto the main stage. HoYoverse has confirmed her as a playable agent for the next update, positioning her as the face of the long‑teased idol faction, Angels of Delusion.
Who Aria is in Zenless Zone Zero
Aria is a member of Angels of Delusion, an idol group made up of high‑profile performers in New Eridu. Within the unit, she serves as the lead vocalist, a role that is central not just to the group’s in‑universe popularity but to how the game frames her personality and combat style.
The campaign leans on in‑world chatter to sketch out her character. Fellow idol Sunna describes late‑night songwriting sessions powered by the thought of Aria’s voice bringing those tracks to life. Anonymous fans focus on her stage endurance, wondering half‑jokingly whether anyone who can sing and dance for that long is “an intelligent construct in disguise.” Even a child rescued inside a Hollow remembers her as “a super pretty lady” who was fighting while singing and dancing.
These snippets present Aria as an idol first: charismatic, relentlessly professional, and surrounded by a dedicated fanbase that mostly sees the spectacle rather than the person—or machine—inside the suit.
Dual identity and the mechanical avatar
The 2.6 marketing confirms that Aria does not perform alone. She operates with a separate mechanical avatar, giving her a dual presence that blurs the line between human idol and combat construct.
In the fiction of New Eridu, most citizens appear to be more familiar with the performance persona than the individual behind it. The language around her “suit” and the lingering question of whether she might be an intelligent construct create deliberate ambiguity about who or what Aria really is. That uncertainty has already become part of her appeal: fans celebrate the robot side as much as the idol side, and community discussion treats the avatar as “the robot” in its own right.
On a gameplay level, that mechanical counterpart strongly hints at split forms or at least distinct animation sets tied to performance and combat. Ye Shunguang has already established that multi‑form agents are on the table. Aria’s setup suggests a similar direction, with the idol exterior handling the public‑facing persona and the construct chassis taking point when it is time to fight inside Hollows.
Aria’s combat role: Ether Anomaly
Aria joins the roster as an Anomaly‑class agent aligned with the Ether element. That combination is immediately significant for team building. Ether Anomaly currently sits in a relatively narrow niche, with far fewer agents able to exploit Ether‑focused sets and Anomaly scaling compared to more established archetypes.
Her classification slots her naturally into a disruption and debuff role built around manipulating enemy states rather than dealing straightforward raw damage. The Ether tag then layers on a damage type that already has bespoke Drive Disc support. Community discussion has repeatedly linked her to the Shining Aria set, which offers Ether damage on two pieces and additional bonuses tied to Anomaly and damage during stun windows on four pieces. That synergy points toward a main on‑field presence that converts basic actions and crowd control windows into outsized Ether hits.
In practical terms, players can expect Aria to work best alongside a dedicated stunner and a support who can either accelerate Daze buildup or amplify damage during stun. Existing agents like Trigger or Dialyn fit the stunner slot on paper, while later updates are expected to round out an Ether Anomaly team core around her.
Key facts about Aria in version 2.6
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Class | Anomaly |
| Element | Ether |
| Faction | Angels of Delusion |
| Role in faction | Lead vocalist |
| Release version | Zenless Zone Zero 2.6 |
| Expected rarity | S‑rank (inferred from animated drip and positioning) |
Banner timing and where Aria fits in the 2.6 schedule
HoYoverse has tied Aria’s debut directly to version 2.6. The character will feature on a limited agent banner during that patch, with current scheduling patterns pointing to a release around February 6, 2026.
The expectation is that Aria will occupy one half of the update’s S‑rank slotting, sharing the version with at least one other high‑rarity agent from Angels of Delusion. Drip marketing and internal naming suggest that Sunna and Nangong Yu will complete the initial idol arc across versions 2.6 and 2.7, with Aria handling Ether Anomaly damage, Yu filling a stunner role, and Sunna acting as Ice support.
For players, this means the 2.6 window is likely to be the primary opportunity to secure a central Ether Anomaly unit tuned for the Shining Aria Drive Disc set and built to function as the on‑field centerpiece of an idol‑themed team.
Why Aria matters for Angels of Delusion and team building
Aria’s arrival does more than add another limited agent to the gacha pool. Angels of Delusion has been hinted at through Inter‑Knot posts, NPC conversations, and achievements since early in the game’s life. Making the group playable formalizes an arc that has been running in the background for months.
Within that arc, Aria anchors both the narrative and mechanical side. As lead vocalist, she is the most visible face of the idols. As an Ether Anomaly agent, she plugs directly into new gear that previously had a very small user base. Players who have already farmed Ether‑focused Discs or invested in Ether Anomaly supports now have a clear frontline target for those resources.
There is also a broader meta angle. Zenless Zone Zero’s combat system rewards tightly themed squads built around shared element and role synergies. A full Angels of Delusion lineup—Aria as Ether Anomaly DPS, a dedicated stunner, and an Ice support generating team‑wide buffs—gives players a self‑contained, lore‑coherent team that can live alongside existing meta cores like Fire or Physical rupture.
Saving Polychrome for Aria
Limited banners in Zenless Zone Zero live and die on preparation. Aria’s Ether Anomaly classification, faction status, and placement in version 2.6 collectively make a strong case for treating her as a priority pull if you lack a dedicated Ether Anomaly main.
To prepare:
Step 1: Audit your current Ether lineup. If Vivian is your only Ether Anomaly and you want a character who occupies more on‑field time, Aria fills that gap cleanly.
Step 2: Start reserving Polychrome during version 2.5 and any interim events. Aim for a cushion that covers at least one pity cycle on her banner, factoring in any Filmgoer gifts or one‑time rewards you still have unclaimed.
Step 3: Farm Ether‑focused Drive Discs and core materials ahead of time. Sets that boost Ether damage and reward aggressive play during stun windows will almost certainly sit near the top of her recommended builds once full numbers are public.
Version 2.6 finally gives Angels of Delusion a playable foothold, and Aria is set up as the centerpiece of that push. For anyone interested in Ether teams, dual‑form agents, or simply running a full idol squad through New Eridu’s Hollows, she is the character that will define the patch.
