Hathor is a permanent S-Rank Lakshana character in Neverness to Everness, built around a stack-and-burst loop. She fills a Burst DPS slot, leaning on her Ultimate Rider Express to enter the Emergency Delivery state, where her Skill upgrades into Cyclone Strike for the bulk of her damage.
Quick answer: Build Express Delivery Power to 6 stacks with held Aerial Command, cast Rider Express to enter Emergency Delivery, then fire Cyclone Strike up to three times before the state ends. Do not switch characters during Emergency Delivery, or it ends immediately.
Hathor role and element in NTE
Hathor uses the Lakshana element on a Plasma Arc and is classed as S-Rank. She is one of two Lakshana characters at launch, alongside Skia, which makes her a primary path to Remora (Lakshana + Cosmos) and Charge (Blossom hitting a Remora-marked target) reactions.
She is a permanent character available from all standard banners. After 50 pulls on the Strange Encounters permanent banner, you can select one standard S-Rank for free, and Hathor is on that list. She can also be picked through a Standard Selector during normal progression.
How Express Delivery Power works
Express Delivery Power, displayed as feathers at the bottom of the screen, is Hathor's resource. She caps at 6 stacks and gains them through specific actions outside Emergency Delivery.
| Source | Stacks gained |
|---|---|
| Aerial Command (tap) | 2 per cast |
| Aerial Command (hold) while target attacks her under Five-Star Tracking | 3 per attack received |
| Critical Riposte after Critical Dodge | 1 (max once per 5s) |
| Excellent Rating Lock trigger when an attacked enemy stays nearby 5s+ | 1 |
| Thorn Dominion (Awakening 2) on natural expiry of lock or tracking | 1 |
| Efficiency Boost passive on enemy defeat | 1 |
Once Rider Express is cast, Hathor enters Emergency Delivery and stops gaining feathers. Her ATK bonus during this state scales with the stacks already on her, so the priority is reaching 6 stacks before the Ultimate, not after.
Hathor skill kit
| Type | Name | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Attack | Rapid Delivery | Up to 5 consecutive Lakshana hits. Holding the final input launches the target airborne, or triggers a plunge if the enemy cannot be lifted. |
| Skill | Aerial Command | Tap for 2 stacks and a wing slash. Hold to charge up to 5s, expanding an AoE and applying Five-Star Tracking, which grants 3 stacks when tracked enemies hit her. |
| Skill (empowered) | Cyclone Strike | Replaces Aerial Command in Emergency Delivery. Three sequential casts consume 1, 2, then 3 stacks, with damage rising each cast. |
| Ultimate | Rider Express | Motorcycle ram into a dive bomb. Enters Emergency Delivery, raises movement speed, and grants an ATK bonus scaled by current Express Delivery Power. |
| Support Skill | Impact Point Designation | Aerial kick that triggers an impact, dealing 2 instances of Lakshana DMG in an area when swapping into Hathor. |
| Critical Riposte | Zero-Error Operation | Counterattack after a Critical Dodge. Reduces Break and grants 1 stack, capped at once per 5s. |
Skill upgrade priority: Aerial Command first, then Rider Express, then Rapid Delivery, with Impact Point Designation last. Most damage flows through the empowered Skill, so investing into Aerial Command pays out the most per resource.
Best Arcs for Hathor
Raging Flames is the signature pick and is obtainable for free by defeating the Headless Rider Anomaly boss. Base ATK is 666 with CRIT DMG as the substat, and the Arc effect gives a flat 15% Lakshana DMG, 10% Redirect Skill and Ultimate DMG for 10s after Ultimate, plus stacking 5% Redirect Skill DMG per cast (up to 2 stacks) during that window. Each Cyclone Strike inside Emergency Delivery triggers and refreshes those stacks cleanly.
| Arc | Base ATK / Sub | Why it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Raging Flames | 666 / CRIT DMG 24% | Best-in-slot. Lakshana DMG, plus Redirect Skill and Ultimate scaling synergize directly with her rotation. |
| Fluff of Fortitude | 512 / ATK 27.5% | Battle Pass option. Flat 22% DMG, rising to 28% under 50% HP enemies. |
| Song of the Whale | 512 / ATK 27.5% | F2P fallback. ATK and bonus damage to Broken enemies, with a small heal on kill. |
| Drawn Blade | — | Early-game option that adds Incantation DMG on Parry Attacks if you land them consistently. |
Best Cartridge and modules
Street Boxer is the clear best Cartridge. The 2-piece grants 10% Lakshana DMG and the 4-piece grants 14% CRIT Chance, climbing higher for 20s when the team triggers Remora or Stain. Stacked with the Delay Warning passive, this gives reliable crit uptime in Cosmos or Psyche-flex teams.
Shadow Creed works as a backup for ATK-focused builds, granting 10% ATK on the 2-piece and a 25% ATK buff for 20s after Skill casts on the 4-piece.
| Slot | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| Main stat | Lakshana DMG% early, CRIT Rate or CRIT DMG once invested |
| Sub stats (priority) | CRIT Rate, CRIT DMG, ATK%, DMG%, Break Intensity |
| Bonus module | Type III (+10% ATK per Type III equipped) |
Best teams
Hathor's strongest shells revolve around keeping Remora active so Street Boxer's 4-piece bonus and Delay Warning stay live. The cleanest setup pairs her with a Cosmos sub-DPS and an Anima or Psyche piece to enable Charge or Stain.
| Team | Composition | Reaction focus |
|---|---|---|
| Charge core (F2P friendly) | Hathor, Esper Zero, Jiuyuan, Haniel | Lakshana + Cosmos for Remora, Anima for Blossom and Charge |
| Stain variant | Hathor, Chiz, Esper Zero, Haniel | Psyche + Lakshana for Stain, plus Remora coverage |
| Charge alt | Hathor, Daffodill, Sakiri, Haniel | Charge enabler with Psyche utility and damage buffs |
Edgar fits as a swap-in healer when Mint runs Vita Buds, since Mint's pistils trigger Charge against Remora-marked enemies and Edgar's Gentle Edge feeds Ultimate Energy back when Charge fires.
Rotation and play pattern
Step 1: Open with a Cosmos or Psyche teammate that has full Cycle Energy. Swap to Hathor so the cycle applies Remora or Stain on contact.
Step 2: Hold Aerial Command for the charged version. Tank one or two hits under Five-Star Tracking to bank 3 stacks per hit. Release once you reach 6 stacks or once the timer runs out.
Step 3: Fill any remaining gap with Basic Attack combos to top up Ultimate Energy. The held Basic Attack ender launches enemies airborne and chains into the plunge for extra damage.
Step 4: Cast Rider Express to enter Emergency Delivery. Hathor's ATK bonus and Movement Speed scale up immediately based on the stacks already built.
Step 5: Fire Cyclone Strike three times in quick succession, consuming 1, then 2, then 3 stacks. Pausing too long between casts will reset the chain and only repeat the first cast.
Step 6: Once Emergency Delivery ends naturally, swap to your supports and DPS partners to apply buffs, trigger reactions, and recharge Ultimate Energy. Do not swap during Emergency Delivery, since this cancels the state and any unspent stacks become wasted.
You will know the rotation worked when the feather counter empties after three Cyclone Strike casts and the Emergency Delivery indicator clears. Each Express Delivery Power stack consumed during Cyclone Strike returns 5 Ultimate Energy, which sets up the next Rider Express cycle.
Awakening priority
| Order | Awakening | Effect summary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Elite Courier | Grants 6 stacks of Express Delivery Power on the first held Skill of each fight. |
| 2 | Engine Resonance | +25% CRIT Chance to the next Cyclone Strike per successful cast in Emergency Delivery. |
| 3 | Regular Sandwich | Up to 15% bonus damage scaled by Express Delivery Power gains. |
| 4 | Thorn Dominion | Stack on natural expiry of Excellent Rating Lock and Five-Star Tracking. |
| 5 | Daily Life Walkthrough | CRIT DMG bonus on entering Emergency Delivery. |
| 6 | Lost Wings | +15% damage to non-Boss targets. |
Resonance unlocks at fixed Awakening counts. Doubled Capacity (3 Awakenings) raises the level of Rapid Delivery, Aerial Command, and Rider Express by 1, while Unhindered Passage (6 Awakenings) ignores 10% of the target's DEF in Emergency Delivery.
Common rotation failures
- Switching characters during Emergency Delivery cancels the state. The empowered Cyclone Strike is lost along with any remaining stacks.
- Casting Rider Express below 6 stacks leaves ATK scaling on the table and reduces total Cyclone Strike damage. Build to full first.
- Pausing between Cyclone Strike casts resets the chain. Each cast must follow quickly to consume 1, 2, then 3 stacks.
- Tapping Aerial Command instead of holding while a tracked enemy is attacking skips the 3-stack-per-hit window.
Ascension materials
| Level | Materials |
|---|---|
| 20 → 30 | Beetle Coin ×25,000, Suspended Delusions ×5 |
| 30 → 40 | Beetle Coin ×50,000, Suspended Delusions ×12, Colorful Ticket Stub ×2 |
| 40 → 50 | Beetle Coin ×75,000, Yearning Delusions ×6, Colorful Ticket Stub ×8 |
| 50 → 60 | Beetle Coin ×100,000, Yearning Delusions ×12, Colorful Ticket Stub ×16 |
| 60 → 70 | Beetle Coin ×125,000, Transcendent Delusions ×6, Colorful Ticket Stub ×24 |
| 70 → 80 | Beetle Coin ×150,000, Transcendent Delusions ×9, Colorful Ticket Stub ×36 |
Hathor is also tied to the Hamster Ball furniture unlock for the Sterry Express, since recruiting her satisfies one of the requirements. Once she joins the roster, the rest of her optimization comes down to landing the Raging Flames drop from Headless Rider, finishing a Street Boxer four-piece, and pacing your rotation so every Emergency Delivery window starts at 6 feathers.