Campaign Angry Cat Aggro Team: Liter · Nero · Modernia · Noir · 1 flex Fire Attacker. Grumpy Cat taunts all enemies for 15 sec — the longest taunt among current Defenders — freeing Modernia and Noir to unload; Cat's Repayment reduces damage taken the more she's healed, so pair her with a healer. Arena/PvP Long Aggro Team: Nero · Cocoa · 1 flex Supporter · Drake · Power. Grumpy Cat's 15-sec taunt covers almost an entire short PvP match, forcing the opponent to hit Nero while Cocoa's healing keeps triggering Cat's Repayment for extra damage reduction. Raid & Interception Armored Healing Team: Rei · Nero · Biscuit · Guilty · 1 flex Attacker. The 15-sec taunt plus Lil' Paw's 30% counterattack chance when hit let Nero soak boss pressure for a long time; constant healing from Biscuit and Rei keeps Cat's Repayment always active — ideal for long Raid/Interception fights.

Nero — Stats, Skills, Best Teams

Q: Should you pull?

Should you pull?CONSIDER IT — Nero is a rare Defender combining wide taunt with real finishing power (1104.91% final ATK), worth considering if you lack a tank or want synergy with your squad's healer; not a top priority if you already have a stronger taunt Defender.

Q: Skill Investment Priority

General guideline: 4/4/4 → 7/4/7 → 10/4/10. Why: Skill 1 (damage reduction) and Burst (taunt + finisher) are her two core effects and should come first; Skill 2 only has a 30% trigger chance, so it can wait.

30-second summary of Nero

Nero is a Fire Nikke in the Defender class, manufactured by Tetra. Stats and skill text below come straight from the game's data.

“Attached to the Ark's animal management troop — Happy Zoo. She tends to all things pertaining to cats. Although soft-spoken, she is not in any way timid.”

Updated: 2026-08-02

Should you pull?

CONSIDER IT — Nero is a rare Defender combining wide taunt with real finishing power (1104.91% final ATK), worth considering if you lack a tank or want synergy with your squad's healer; not a top priority if you already have a stronger taunt Defender.

Review & Analysis

Nero is a Fire SMG Defender from Tetra, a counter-attacking tank that pairs well with healer allies. Cat's Repayment automatically triggers whenever a recovery effect goes off, reducing Damage Taken for whoever got healed while stacking a Damage Taken reduction on Nero herself. Lil' Paw gives a random chance to counter-hit attackers, dealing especially heavy damage while in Grumpy Cat status, plus a permanent Max HP boost right from the start of battle. Her Burst, Grumpy Cat, taunts all enemies to protect the team while landing a very heavy hit on the highest-HP enemy, and also grants a big HP Potency boost once Cat's Repayment is fully stacked.

Base Stats

HP711,171

ATK17,059

DEF4,364

Max Ammo120

Reload Time1.3s

Skills

Normal Attack

■ Affects target enemy.
Deals 8.39% of ATK as damage.

Cat's RepaymentSkill 1

■ Activates when $bcolrecovery takes effect$bfcol. Affects the target who applied the recovery effect.
Damage Taken ▼ 14.14 % for 5 sec
■ Activates when $bcolrecovery takes effect$bfcol. Affects self.
Cat's Repayment Damage Taken ▼ 8.43%, stacks up to 5 time(s) and lasts for 5 sec.

Lil' PawSkill 2

■ There is a 30% chance of activating when attacked. Affects the target.
Damage Taken ▲ 8.26% for 5 sec.
■ There is a 30% chance of activating when attacked in Grumpy Cat status. Affects the target.
Deals 158.05% of $bcolfinal$bfcol ATK as damage.
■ Activates when entering battle. Affects self.
Max HP ▲ 60.28% continuously.

Grumpy CatBurst Skill

■ Affects 1 enemy unit(s) with the highest HP.
Deals 1104.91% of $bcolfinal$bfcol ATK as damage.
■ Affects self.
Attract: Taunt all enemies for 15 sec.
■ Activates when Cat's Repayment is fully stacked. Affects self.
Grump Cat: HP Potency ▲ 60.08% for 15 sec.

Skill Investment Priority

Prioritize Burst Grumpy Cat (biggest damage plus team-protecting taunt) → Lil' Paw (counter damage and permanent Max HP, core tanking kit) → Cat's Repayment (stacking damage reduction, needs a healer ally).

General guideline: 4/4/4 → 7/4/7 → 10/4/10. Why: Skill 1 (damage reduction) and Burst (taunt + finisher) are her two core effects and should come first; Skill 2 only has a 30% trigger chance, so it can wait.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths

Her Burst both taunts all enemies for 15 seconds and deals 1104.91% final ATK to the highest-HP enemy — a rare combination of aggro-tanking and strong finishing power for a Defender.
Skill 1 lowers damage taken by 14.14% for a just-healed ally, synergizing with any healer in the squad, not just Biscuit.
Skill 2 counters for 158.05% final ATK when attacked in Grumpy Cat status, adding extra damage while she holds the tank role.

Weaknesses

Her SMG normal-attack multiplier is only 8.39% ATK, contributing almost no damage outside her skills.
Both Skill 1 and Skill 2 have their own trigger conditions (a 30% chance when attacked, or requiring an ally to have just been healed), not fixed 100% buffs.
As a primarily tank/taunt unit, her overall damage contribution trails dedicated Attackers.

Overload Priority

Overload priority by weapon type — applies to every Nikke using this weapon.

Sub-stat	Priority	Rolls
ATK		4x
Hit Rate		2-4x
Elemental DMG		2x
Max Ammo		1-2x

Gear →

General Info

Meta Tier

D

Class

Defender

Element

Fire

Weapon Type

SMG

Manufacturer

Tetra

Squad

Happy Zoo

Voice Actors

Yu Hye-ji · Jalitza Delgado · Ayana Taketatsu

Release date

6 july 2023

Recommended Build

Cubes

Vigor Cube / Resilience Cube

Overload (OL) Priority

Increase ATK › Increase Hit Rate › Increase Element Damage Dealt

Suggested by role & weapon. See: Gear · Cubes

Collection Item (Doll) Priority

PvE

1/10

PvP

10/10

Coffee Commander Doll Ltd.

Gaze of Courage: ■ Activates at the start of the battle. Normal Attack Damage Multiplier ▲ 9.46%. DEF ▲ 37%. | Grounding Pillar: ■ Activates at the start of the battle. Damage Taken ▼ 17%. Cover's Max HP ▲ 30%.

“Commander is enjoying a cup of coffee leisurely. Perhaps it's because the coffee was made by you.”

Recommended Teams

Campaign

Angry Cat Aggro Team: Liter · Nero · Modernia · Noir · 1 flex Fire Attacker. Grumpy Cat taunts all enemies for 15 sec — the longest taunt among current Defenders — freeing Modernia and Noir to unload; Cat's Repayment reduces damage taken the more she's healed, so pair her with a healer.

Arena/PvP

Long Aggro Team: Nero · Cocoa · 1 flex Supporter · Drake · Power. Grumpy Cat's 15-sec taunt covers almost an entire short PvP match, forcing the opponent to hit Nero while Cocoa's healing keeps triggering Cat's Repayment for extra damage reduction.

Raid & Interception

Armored Healing Team: Rei · Nero · Biscuit · Guilty · 1 flex Attacker. The 15-sec taunt plus Lil' Paw's 30% counterattack chance when hit let Nero soak boss pressure for a long time; constant healing from Biscuit and Rei keeps Cat's Repayment always active — ideal for long Raid/Interception fights.

Lore & Trivia

“Attached to the Ark's animal management troop — Happy Zoo. She tends to all things pertaining to cats. Although soft-spoken, she is not in any way timid.”