Hathor is an S-Rank Lakshana melee DPS in Neverness to Everness who lives or dies by a single five-second burst window. Her kit is built around stacking Express Delivery Power, then converting that resource into a motorcycle-fueled flurry of Cyclone Strike hits during Emergency Delivery. Build her around that loop and she becomes one of the strongest Charge-team finishers in the roster.
Hathor at a snapshot
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Rarity | S-Rank |
| Element | Lakshana |
| Arc type | Plasma |
| Role | Main DPS / Battery |
| Resource | Express Delivery Power (max 6 stacks) |
| Burst window | Emergency Delivery, 5 seconds |
She is a Sterry Express courier in lore and a hit-and-stay carry in practice. The signature reaction she enables is Delay Warning, which extends Remora duration to 12 seconds and grants the team +10% Crit Rate against Remora-marked targets. That one passive is a major reason she fits Charge teams so cleanly even when she is not the highest-damage unit on the field.
How the Express Delivery Power loop works
Hathor's damage is gated behind two phases. First, build stacks. Second, spend them inside Emergency Delivery. She does not generate stacks while in the burst state, so coming in with a full gauge is the entire game.
Step 1: Hold the Redirect Skill (Aerial Command) to enter charge mode. Tapping it grants 2 stacks; holding applies Five-Star Tracking, which grants 3 more stacks if a tagged enemy attacks Hathor or an ally during the 5-second window.
Step 2: Use Critical Dodge into Rapid Delivery to trigger Zero-Error Operation, the riposte counter. It grants 1 stack on hit, with a 5-second internal cooldown.
Step 3: Let off-field passives top you off. Defeating an enemy grants 1 stack, and the Excellent Rating Lock effect can also feed stacks when enemies linger nearby and swing.
Step 4: Cast Rider Express (Ultimate) at full stacks. Hathor gains an ATK bonus that scales with Express Delivery Power, gets a movement speed boost, and her Skill becomes Cyclone Strike for 5 seconds.
Step 5: Spam Cyclone Strike until Emergency Delivery ends. Do not swap characters during this window because switching immediately cancels the state.
Skill upgrade priority
Levels go into the Redirect Skill and Ultimate first because that is where Hathor's damage actually comes from. Basic Attack matters for Critical Riposte scaling, and the Support Skill is mostly off-field filler.
| Priority | Skill | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aerial Command (Redirect) | Becomes Cyclone Strike during burst; main stack generator |
| 2 | Rider Express (Ultimate) | Opens Emergency Delivery and applies the stack-based ATK bonus |
| 3 | Rapid Delivery (Basic) | Scales Critical Riposte counter damage |
| 4 | Impact Point Designation (Support) | Off-field AoE Lakshana hits, lowest impact |
Best Arcs for Hathor
Hathor wants Lakshana DMG amplification and ATK that lines up with her Skill-into-Ultimate cadence. Raging Flames is the cleanest fit because it directly buffs Redirect Skill and Ultimate damage right after she casts Ultimate, which is exactly when Cyclone Strike is firing.
| Arc | Rarity | Why it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Raging Flames (Headless Rider) | 5★ | +15% Lakshana DMG, plus +10% Redirect Skill and Ultimate DMG for 10s after Ultimate. Stacks extra Redirect DMG per cast during the buff. Maps perfectly onto her burst loop. |
| Fluff of Fortitude (Jawbreaker's Candy) | 5★ | Flat +22% DMG, rising to +28% under 50% HP. Reliable filler that needs zero setup. |
| Song of the Whale (Deep Blue Sorrow) | 5★ | +12% ATK and +12% damage to Broken enemies, with self-heal on Broken kills. Strong when paired with Break-focused teammates. |
| Drawn Blade (Crimson Hexblade) | 4★ | Adds Incantation-type bonus damage on Parry Attack. Solid free-to-play backup. |
Best Cartridge set
Street Boxer is the run-away pick. The 2-piece bonus boosts Lakshana DMG, and the 4-piece grants up to +28% Crit Rate while Remora or Stain is active on the team. Because Hathor's damage is concentrated into a 5-second window, stabilizing crit rate per hit is more valuable than raw ATK rolls.
| Cartridge | Set bonus | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Street Boxer | 2pc: Lakshana DMG +10% · 4pc: Crit Rate +14%, +14% more for 20s when team triggers Remora or Stain | Best in slot. Pairs with her own Delay Warning passive for near-permanent uptime. |
| Shadow Creed | 2pc: ATK +10% · 4pc: ATK +25% for 20s after casting Skill | Fallback when Street Boxer rolls are bad. Easy uptime but no crit support. |
Stat priority: Crit Rate / Crit DMG > Lakshana DMG% > ATK% > ATK flat. Aim for a roughly 1:2 Crit Rate to Crit DMG ratio after the Street Boxer bonus is factored in.
Best team compositions
Hathor demands field time and rewards Charge reactions. The Charge triple-cycle (Lakshana + Cosmos + Anima) is her strongest shell because Vita Pistils hitting Remora-marked enemies grant the active character +10 Ultimate Energy, which keeps her burst loop spinning.
Charge team (premium)
| Slot | Character | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Main DPS | Hathor | Lakshana finisher; provides Delay Warning Remora extension and team Crit Rate |
| Cosmos | Esper Zero | Triggers Remora with Hathor; Charge enabler |
| Anima | Jiuyuan | Sustained damage and Anima RES shred via Lethal Rose Pact |
| Survival | Fadia | Healing and max HP buff during long on-field windows |
Charge team (low-rarity)
| Slot | Character | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Main DPS | Hathor | Same role as above |
| Cosmos | Esper Zero | Free starter Cosmos unit for Remora setup |
| Anima | Mint | Replaces Jiuyuan; lower ceiling but still completes the Charge triple-cycle |
| Buff | Haniel | Free A-Class buffer when Fadia is unavailable |
Battery / sub-DPS variant
Hathor also works as a battery for high-cost Ultimates because she generates Esper Meter quickly through her Aerial Command stacking. A Chiz + Hathor + Jiuyuan + Haniel core uses Hathor's Delay Warning to extend Remora to 12 seconds and feed the team's Crit Rate, while Chiz's Hanahaki Disease passive grants 4 extra Ultimate Energy per Charge proc.
Awakening priority
Awakenings (Hathor's ascension-style passives) shorten her setup time and harden her crit. The first three are doing the heavy lifting.
| Awakening | Rank | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Elite Courier (A1) | ★★★ | First held Redirect Skill grants 6 stacks of Express Delivery Power, immediately enabling a max-stack opener |
| Engine Resonance (A4) | ★★★ | Each Cyclone Strike cast in Emergency Delivery adds 25% Crit Rate to the next Cyclone Strike |
| Daily Life Walkthrough (A6) | ★★★ | +30% Crit DMG while in Emergency Delivery |
| Thorn Dominion (A2) | ★★ | Grants stacks when Excellent Rating Lock and Five-Star Tracking expire naturally |
| Regular Sandwich (A5) | ★★ | +1% damage per Express Delivery Power stack, up to 15% |
| Lost Wings (A3) | ★ | +15% damage to non-Boss targets, mob-clear oriented |
Common mistakes that flatten her damage
- Casting Ultimate at low stacks. The ATK bonus during Emergency Delivery scales with Express Delivery Power. Six stacks before Rider Express is the baseline.
- Swapping mid-burst. Emergency Delivery ends instantly on character switch. Pre-load any teammate buffs before Ultimate.
- Tapping Aerial Command instead of holding. Holding triggers Five-Star Tracking, which is where the bonus stacks come from when enemies attack you.
- Running her without a Cosmos partner. Without Remora uptime, Street Boxer's 4-piece sits at +14% Crit Rate instead of +28%, and Delay Warning has nothing to extend.
How to know your build is working
Three signals tell you the loop is running correctly. Express Delivery Power should hit 6 stacks before you press Ultimate. The Emergency Delivery indicator should stay active for the full 5-second window with no character swap interrupting it. And Cyclone Strike should fire at least 3 times during that window, with each subsequent hit benefiting from the Engine Resonance crit ramp.
Hathor rewards discipline more than she rewards investment. Get the stacking rhythm right, lock her into a Charge shell with a Cosmos and Anima partner, and her burst window does the rest.