What Is Honkai: Nexus Anima?
Honkai: Nexus Anima is HoYoverse's creature-collector meets auto-chess RPG. You build a squad of up to 6 Anima (spiritual beings), place them on a hexagonal grid, and watch them battle automatically โ but the real game is in the team composition, synergies, and upgrade decisions you make before and between battles.
If you've played Pokรฉmon (catch creatures โ build a team) or Teamfight Tactics (place units โ synergies โ auto-battle), Nexus Anima sits squarely in that genre. It adds a deep story, gacha banner system, and persistent character progression layered on top.
Core Concepts (Read This First)
๐พ What are Anima?
Anima are the creatures you collect and deploy in battle. Each has an element (Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, Light, Dark), a rarity (4โ or 5โ ), a role (DPS, Tank, Support, Healer), and a unique active skill. Your goal is to build a team of 6 with strong synergies.
โ๏ธ How does combat work?
Before each battle, you place your Anima on a 3ร2 grid (front row / back row). Combat is fully automatic โ your Anima attack, use skills, and move on their own. You intervene by triggering active skills at the right moment using the Action Bar. Between battles, you can rearrange positions and swap Anima.
๐ What are Synergies?
When you deploy 2 or more Anima of the same element or type, you unlock a Synergy bonus โ passive buffs that activate for your whole team. For example, running 3 Fire Anima might grant +15% ATK to all Fire units. Building around 1โ2 strong synergies is the foundation of every meta team.
๐บ๏ธ What are Planes?
Planes are the main progression zones โ each Plane is a chapter of the story with a boss encounter at the end. Clear Plane 1 to unlock Plane 2, and so on. Plane clears reward premium currency, Anima upgrade materials, and new gacha pulls.
Day 1 Priorities โ What to Do First
Reroll for a Strong 5โ Anima
Before anything else, use the tutorial free pulls to get a great starter. If you don't get an S-Tier 5โ Anima, delete your account data and start over. This takes ~5 minutes per attempt and is absolutely worth it on Day 1.
- Target: Soluna, Voltrix, or Glaciara (S-Tier โ see our Reroll Guide for the full priority list)
- Also worth keeping: any cross-IP character (Kiana, Blade, Luocha)
Complete the Tutorial & Prologue
Play through the tutorial fully โ it explains the battle system, Anima placement, and synergies. Don't skip cutscenes on the first run (they're actually good). You'll also get free resources for finishing each chapter.
Spend Your Stamina (Vitality)
Vitality (the stamina system) recharges over time โ don't let it cap. Spend it on:
- Material Expeditions โ farm Anima upgrade materials
- Plane Stages โ push story progress and get pull currency
- Training Battles โ level up your starter Anima quickly
Complete Daily Missions
Daily missions reset at midnight (server time) and give the most pull currency per time invested of any activity. Do them every single day โ even if you only have 10 minutes to play.
Build a Core Team Around Your Reroll Anima
Once you have your strong 5โ , build around them. Pick 2 supporting Anima of the same element from your free pulls, then fill the last 3 slots with whatever 4โ Anima you have with complementary elements. Focus all upgrade materials on your 5โ first โ don't spread resources thin.
Common Beginner Mistakes
โ Spreading upgrades thin
Upgrading 6 Anima equally is worse than maxing 3. Focus your best Anima and carry weaker ones until you can replace them.
โ Ignoring position
Tanks belong in the front row, DPS in the back. Putting a fragile DPS in front will cost you fights you should win.
โ Using pulls immediately
Save your early free pulls until you know which banner has the best value. Pity carries between banners โ patience pays off.
โ Skipping synergies
A team of 6 great individual Anima without synergies will lose to a team of 4 average Anima with active synergy bonuses.
โ Not using active skills
Combat is auto, but manual skill use at the right moment can turn a close fight. Watch the battle and intervene when your skill is charged.
โ Buying the first shop offer
The in-game shop refreshes daily. The first offer is rarely the best. Wait for upgrade materials before spending your shop currency.
Progression Roadmap: Week 1
Here's a rough target for your first 7 days, assuming ~30โ45 minutes of daily play:
Day 1โ2: Foundation
- Complete reroll with S-Tier target Anima
- Finish tutorial + Plane 1 story
- Claim all new-player login rewards
- Set up daily mission habit
Day 3โ5: Consolidate
- Clear Plane 2 (aim for 3 stars on each stage)
- Raise your best 5โ Anima to Level 20+
- Lock in your main team composition โ don't keep swapping
- Run the Training Dungeon daily for XP materials
Day 6โ7: First Push
- Attempt Plane 3 โ you may need to grind Plane 2 materials first
- Unlock the Arena (PvP) for extra daily rewards
- Evaluate your team: is your synergy working? If not, adjust before spending more materials