What is Abyss / Superstring Dimension?

What is Abyss/Superstring Dimension?

There are two types of abyss in Honkai Impact 3rd, one is Q-Manifold, accessible after level 25, and Superstring Dimension, after breaking through and reaching level 81.

Basically Superstring Dimension contains 4 stages you have to clear. For the first 2 stages and a side stage, just a clear is sufficient, doesn’t matter how fast or slow you are. Clear = 6000 score. On the boss stage, how fast you clear will decide your abyss fate (and rewards). The faster you clear the boss stage, the higher your score. This is your main source of crystal income in the game there are 2 cycles weekly, Monday-Wednesday and Friday-Sunday. The official discord has a handy notifications channel to remind you when abyss opens and closes.

Superstring Dimension Tier System

Unlike Memorial Arena, in Superstring Dimension you don’t compete against the whole server players, instead you are placed in a bracket with 20 players maximum. The end goal is to accumulate as much trophy as possible so you rank up and maintain top tiers in your server. There is tier system tied to this trophy, and you don’t always rank up or fall of a tier directly every cycle. Whether you fall of or rank up a tier, it depends on your trophy accumulation. When a cycle finalize, your trophy will increase, stays the same, or decrease. The change of remaining trophies will promote them to higher rank if they have high enough trophies, or vice versa. In other words, players will not be promoted or relegated directly. When you level up to 81 and enter Superstring Dimension for the first time, you will also start with 180 Virtual Trophies, which will be reduced instead of the actual trophies in case of their rank is low during finalization. Virtual trophies can be increased by 100 if promoted to Red Lotus for the first time, and once reduced to 0, it can’t be gained again.

Tiered Rewards

This is the list of rewards you will obtain after finalization each cycle. When you are promoted or demoted to a tier, you get the rewards of the tier you are promoting/demoting.

Disturbances

Superstring Dimensions has disturbances system, where each disturbance number increase means higher enemies HP and resistances. Disturbances are decided during cycle finalization, its change only takes place after next cycle starts, and will not change until the next cycle. The lower a Superstring Dimension tier is (see Tiered Rewards section), the lower the disturbance is, so the easier the enemies are to defeat. Disturbance also varies across servers, even in the exact same tiers (like Red Lotus or Agony 3), since players performance contribute directly to disturbance number.

Superstring Dimension Timer Mechanics

When you enter a Superstring Dimension boss stage and the warning siren starts blasting, the timer also starts. You are given 5 minutes to kill the boss, which in Superstring Dimension boss it manifests in form of bonus point.

Bonus point doesn’t stop in almost all circumstances, even in early valkyries’ ultimates, so for every second you spend bonus point will keep decreases. Only skills and ultimates with Time-frozen Domain plus Stellar Outburst entry animation and some parts of transition phases can halt bonus point from decreasing.

Since your objective is to kill boss at highest bonus point possible, you don’t necessarily have to inflict the highest damage, you just need to kill faster, they are not synonymous. Killing faster involves a balanced combination of faster rotations and high damage. In addition, many abyss bosses own specific mechanic you should take note in order to clear boss faster, especially on transition phases since abyss bosses’ transition phases still continue decreasing bonus point. Boss mechanics are explained in bosses’ Details and Skills. For example, check Lantern boss’ details. Lantern boss has multiple hitcount shields and the advantaged features here is Fast ATK. Bringing Fast ATK valkyries like Peregrine Sword Sushang and Lunar Vow will help clearing her transition phase a lot.

Superstring Dimension Weather

Each Superstring Dimension cycle is buffed by a certain weather, that will be resetted when that SD cycle ends. An SD weather can simply increases damage based on damage type, element, or Astral Ring Specialization/Attributes, or has specific triggers to increase damage. Often SD weathers also debuff opposite damage type/element.

SD weather buffs have a very big multiplier due to HI3 damage calculation, but if you don’t have the correct teams, neglecting weathers CAN work better than sticking to weather buffs without proper team, saka countered type or resistant/immune elements.

How to Bruteforce Superstring Dimension Bosses?

There is no rule of thumb for bruteforcing SD bosses, but I’ll set few guides here.

1. Type counter. DO NOT. EVER. Forget about type charts. Almost all bruteforce methods rely on type counters.
2. Mechanics. Always bring the correct dps or at least support to counter boss mechanics. Check list of some most important HI3 mechanics and how to counter them here.
3. Weather. No type countering valks? Then back to your biggest ally, weather. Just bring the correct valk teams.
4. Astral Ring Attribute/Tag. For AR-related weathers, AR Attribute/Tag makes big buff from the weather already. No right AR Specialization? Just bring as many as valkyries with the mentioned AR Attribute/Tag. PAWS as leader with FDD/FWS/LV/RS can do fine against Lantern boss this way. You just NEED TWO of the key points to bruteforce Agony 3 well , sometimes even Red Lotus. In addition, make sure your valkyrie attacks are high enough (1300+ for S0 rank-S valkyries), ALWAYS activate Gene Limit, and ALWAYS equip Agony/Red Lotus emblem.

Things to avoid when bruteforcing are:

1. Using valkyries with elements which bosses resist or immune to.
2. Using TYPE COUNTERED valkyries. Yes, check your type charts NOW!
3. Using valkyries that are debuffed from the weather.

Oh yeah, some might ask, “do I need to bring newer valkyries?” Yes, but not always necessary. You’ll know if you watch Mimi Mitsu’s videos.

After all set, next is to enter the field, sharpen your rotations and find faster way to kill bosses. Even seasoned players take long time to sharpen their rotations, so you’ll have to do that as well unfortunately. References for non-best teams are scarce, and I hope there are more people daring to upload non-best team references.

To see complete list of mechanics, check out our basic mechanics page for more info.

Superstring Dimension Weather and Boss List

Below is grouped list of Superstring Dimension weathers.

Element Based Weather List

1. Physical: bonus Physical DMG, less Lighning DMG

2. Lightning: bonus Lightning DMG, less Physical DMG

3. Fire: bonus Fire DMG, less Ice DMG

4. Frost: bonus Ice DMG, less Fire DMG

Type Based Weather List

5. Counter: bonus type counter DMG, less type disadvantage DMG

6. Quantum: QUA bonus DMG

7. IMG Environment: IMG bonus DMG

8. Stardust Environment: SD bonus DMG

Attacking Range Based Weather List

9. Ranged: bonus ranged DMG, less melee DMG

10. Scrappy: bonus melee DMG, less ranged DMG

🚨 Bleed and Ignite DMG

Bleed and Ignite DMG are counted AS NEITHER melee or ranged DMG.

Status Based Weather List

11. Electrified: bonus DMG when Paralyzed and a while after it ends

12. Freezing Environment: bonus DMG when Frozen and a while after it ends

13. Ignited: bonus DMG when Ignited and a while after it ends

14. Blood Thorn Patch: bonus DMG when Bleeding and a while after it ends

15. Unbalanced Environment: bonus DMG when Stunned and a while after it ends

Mechanics Based Weather List

16. Bloodthirsty: more enemies killed mean more DMG

17. Fortified: bonus DMG when shields are broken

18. Dominance: with summoned entities, self and summoned entities deal more DMG

19. Symphonic Environment: the more elemental DMG inside a team, the more DMG the team deals

Astral Ring Based Weather List

20. Stellar Environment: bonus DMG when AR system is activated and more when entering Stellar Outburst

21. Starless Environment: bonus DMG outside Stellar Outburst and more if AR is not activated

22. Shadow Environment: the more Wheel of Destiny supports inside a team, the more DMG the team deals (max 2 valkyries). bonus DMG if WoD is activated

23. Echoing Environment: the more World Star supports inside a team, the more DMG the team deals (max 2 valkyries). bonus DMG if WS is activated

24. Flux Environment: the more Law of Ascension supports inside a team, the more DMG the team deals (max 2 valkyries). bonus DMG if LoA is activated

25. Extreme Environment: the more Grail of Infinitude supports inside a team, the more DMG the team deals (max 2 valkyries). bonus DMG if Grail is activated

26. Stellar Crown Environment: the more Rite of Oblivion supports inside a team, the more DMG the team deals (max 2 valkyries). bonus DMG if RoO is activated