Story — Zenless Zone Zero

Phaethon's Story (also known as Major Commissions) is the main story of Zenless Zone Zero. It follows Belle and Wise investigating the Hollows in search of the truth behind the "Fall of the Old Capital", allying with various Agents and Factions along the way. Certain chapters require the player to reach a specific Inter-Knot Level to progress. Story Commissions are the missions directly linked to this main plot, split between "City" content (not recorded in the HDD, cannot be replayed in full) and "H.D.D." content (recorded, infinitely replayable, can be attempted on "Hard Mode").

After starting "The Hare and the Proxy" during the Prologue, a prompt asks the player how they would like to tackle story commissions; the setting can be changed anytime in General Settings. Casual Mode: story-focused, combat is easier, more suited for casual players. Challenge Mode: challenge and story, combat is harder, more suited for hardcore players.

Story Commissions under the "City" group (not to be confused with City Commissions) are not recorded in the HDD and are not replayable in full, though the "Special Event" dialogue can still be rewatched through the Video Archive. These are typically linked to the main plot through Phaethon's Story, or are part of an Agent Story / Special Episode.

Story Commissions recorded in the H.D.D. system for replay are tied to a specific "Chapter". Easy Mode: replays the commission as it originally happened, with all Special Event dialogue, easier enemies / no time limit, and the original Trial Agents. Hard Mode: unlocks after clearing Easy, features higher-level enemies, is timed with different completion criteria, and has NO Trial Agents (the player must use their own team). Array Mode: the tile-by-tile "TV Screen" Hollow-exploration gameplay used by most Version 1.0 Story Commissions; dropped for new commissions from Version 1.2, and in Version 1.4 most existing commissions were reworked to "Marcel Maze" gameplay (aka "Eous Gameplay"), with the old Array Mode version kept optional behind a UI toggle. Rank-Up: a Story Commission subtype unlocked at certain Inter-Knot Levels, the ONLY way to raise Proxy Rank — there are 4 such commissions, given by Shepherd at Inter-Knot levels 20, 30, 40, and 50.

Per the community wiki's Navigation listing, Season 1 comprises: Prologue "Business x Strangeness x Justness" · Chapter 1 "Cat's Lost & Found" (A)/(B) · Chapter 1 Intermission "The Zero Zone" · Chapter 2 "A Call From the Hollow's Heart" (A)/(B) · Chapter 2 Interlude "Mission Unthinkable" (A)/(B) · Chapter 3 "The Midnight Pursuit" (A)/(B) · Chapter 4 "Tour de Inferno" (A)/(B) · Chapter 5 "A Storm of Falling Stars" (A)/(B) · Season 1 Epilogue "Bury Your Tears With the Past" (A)/(B). the community wiki does not publish per-chapter plot summaries, only names and order — detailed content: not yet published.

Per the community wiki, Season 2 comprises: Chapter 1 "Where Clouds Embrace the Dawn" · Chapter 2 "The Impending Crash of Waves" · Chapter 3 "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" · Chapter 4 "Memories of Dreams Bygone" · Chapter 5 "On the Precipice of the Abyss" · Chapter 6 "To Be Fuel for the Night" · Season 2 Interlude "Encore for an Old Dream" · Season 2 Epilogue "New: Eridan Sunset" (A)/(B). Each chapter was added gradually across updates (Version 2.0 through 2.8, per the Change History). Detailed per-chapter content: not yet published.

Per the community wiki, Season 3 (ongoing, not yet concluded) currently has: Chapter 1 "A Sleepwalker's Confession" (added in Version 3.0) · Chapter 2 "The Long Goodbye". Separately, "The Zero Zone" (part of the Phaethon thread) is listed outside the three main seasons. Further chapters: not yet published.

Per the community wiki, the "Phaethon" section of the Phaethon's Story page notes that although certain chapters are classified as "Major Commissions", they could also count as one of Phaethon's own Agent Story entries — the wiki gives Chapter 1 Intermission "The Zero Zone" as its example of this overlap.

Per the community wiki's Change History for Phaethon's Story, chapters were added gradually across updates. Version 1.0 (launch, "Welcome To New Eridu") already included: Prologue "Business x Strangeness x Justness", Chapter 1 "Cat's Lost & Found" (A)/(B), Chapter 1 Intermission "The Zero Zone" and "Just Another Day at the Video Store", Chapter 2 "A Call From the Hollow's Heart" (A)/(B), Chapter 2 Interlude "Mission Unthinkable" (A)/(B), and Chapter 3 "The Midnight Pursuit" (A)/(B). Version 1.2 added Chapter 4 "Tour de Inferno" (A)/(B). Version 1.4 added Chapter 5 "A Storm of Falling Stars" (A)/(B). Version 1.6 added Season 1 Epilogue "Bury Your Tears With the Past" (A); Version 1.7 added part (B). Version 2.0 opened Season 2 with Chapter 1 "Where Clouds Embrace the Dawn", followed by Chapter 2 "The Impending Crash of Waves" (2.1), Chapter 3 "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night" (2.2), Chapter 4 "Memories of Dreams Bygone" (2.3), Chapter 5 "On the Precipice of the Abyss" (2.4), Chapter 6 "To Be Fuel for the Night" (2.5), Interlude "Encore for an Old Dream" (2.6), and Epilogue "New: Eridan Sunset" part (A) in 2.7 / part (B) in 2.8. Version 3.0 opened Season 3 with Chapter 1 "A Sleepwalker's Confession".