The First Descendant: Valby Build & Best Loadout

Welcome to The First Descendant Valby Build Guide.

In this guide, we will explain how to create a powerful build for the Valby Descendant. We’ll cover how the skills work and which weapons, stats and modules you need to create the most powerful build for Valby. Visit The First Descendant Builds page for more TFD Character Builds.

Valby’s bubbly and optimistic personality lights up everyone around her. She is often scolded for not acting like a proper soldier.

Table of Contents:

How to play Valby
How to unlock Valby
Skills Explanation

Bubble Bullet
Plop Plop
Clean Up
Laundry Bomb
Water Intake (Passive)

Descendant Modules
Best Weapons & Weapon Modules
Reactor
External Components
Valby’s Story

Here is a quick list of the pros and cons of the Valby Build for The First Descendant.

How to Play Valby in the First Descendant

The main focus of Valby in the First Descendant is AOE damage, so we recommend playing into this.

You should use Valby’s skills to afflict the Laundry status on as many enemies as possible, this will pay off with a huge damage buff when you use the Laundry Bomb skill – up to 200% more damage if you afflicted 8 or more enemies with Laundry.

Another important thing to note is Valby’s passive – her skills will cost 30% less MP whenever she is stood in water, including water pools created by her skills. Try to keep this in mind when positioning Valby – standing on water as much as possible will make it a lot easier to manage MP costs in combat, but you don’t need to do this 100% of the time.

We also ranked Valby’s kit and playstyle and added her to our The First Descendant Tier List – Best Characters.

How to Unlock Valby in The First Descendant

Let’s take a quick look at how to unlock Valby in the First Descendant. To unlock Valby, you have to purchase her from the store, or research her. You need the following items to research Valby:

1x Valby Enhanced Cells

422x Repton
571x Superfluid
48x Data Processing Neural Circuit
1x Valby Enhanced Cell Blueprint
200k Gold

1x Valby Stabilizer

246x Monad Shard
239x Compound Coating Material
40x Negative Ion Particle
1x Valby Stabilizer Blueprint
200k Gold

1x Valby Spiral Catalyst

519x Metal Accelerant
386x Hardener
32x Encrypted Neural Circuit
1x Valby Sprial Catalyst Blueprint

1x Valby Code

Intercept Battle: Common Devourer – Amorphous Material Pattern 032
Intercept Battle: Common Pyromaniac – Amorphous Material Pattern 036
Location 3: Sterile Land Normal – Void Fusion Reactor – Sterile Land Rockfall Zone
Location 4: Sterile Land Hard – Abyssal Void Fusion Reactor – Sterile Land Repository

400k Credits

When you visit Magisters Anais at the Research Institute you can hover over each item. Then click on Acquisition Info and it will tell you where this specific item drops. You can also view our in-depth guide on How to unlock Valby in The First Descendant.

The First Descendant Valby Skills Explained

In this section, we are going to explain the skills available to our Valby Build in the First Descendant, how each skill works and the best ways for you to use them.

Bubble Bullet

Bounces a Bubble Bullet forward to create a small puddle where the Bubble Bullet impacts and where she stands. Enemies in the small puddle take continuous damage and are inflicted with Laundry.

Bubble Bullet Skill Description:

Non-Attribute – Fusion
Fires a Bubble Bullet forward, creating Small Puddles where she stands and where the Bubble Bullet hits.
The enemy standing in the Small Puddle receives continuous damage and becomes inflicted with Laundry.
When the Bubble Bullet pops, nearby enemies receive AOE damage, increasing based on the number of bounces.

How to use Bubble Bullet:

Bubble Bullet is a useful skill with multiple uses. Not only does it deal decent AOE damage directly to enemies, but it leaves a ground AOE that deals more damage over time. The Laundry status applied to enemies also makes them weak to Electric and Chill Damage, which can be used to either improve Valby’s attacks or those of allies.

Plop Plop

Creates a large puddle where Valby is standing, then dives in. Valby then pops out at a selected location in the large puddle. Enemies in the large puddle take continuous damage and are inflicted with Laundry.

Plop Plop Description:

Non-Attribute – Dimension
Valby forms a Big Puddle where she stands and jumps into it. She then jumps out from another Big Puddle formed at a designated spot, inflicting Knockdown on nearby enemies.
Enemies standing in the Big Puddle receive continuous damage and become inflicted with Laundry.
The skill’s cooldown decreases proportionally to the number of enemies inflicted with Knockdown.

How to use Plop Plop:

Another skill that has multiple purposes, Plop Plop can be used for mobility, either jumping closer to enemies or retreating from them. It knocks down enemies, applies AOE damage to enemies in the target area, and applies the Laundry debuff to decrease their Electric and Chill resistances.

This skill is best used for starting an attack or retreating if you’re in a tight spot.

Clean Up

Vallby becomes Liquefied. While Liquefied, she cannot take her feet off of the ground or use skills, but she can move through enemies and her Movement Speed and DEF increase. When moving while Liquefied, she creates a path of water that deals continuous damage to enemies and inflicts Laundry.

Clean Up Description:

Non-Attribute – Dimension
Enter Liquefied state. While Liquefied, Valby cannot take her feet off the ground and is unable to use skills, but does not collide with enemies. Her Movement Speed increases while Damage decreases.
Moving while Liquefied creates a Waterway. Enemies standing on the Waterway receive continuous damage and become inflicted with Laundry.

How to use Clean Up:

The Waterway AOE caused by the Cleap Up skill deals pretty good AOE damage to enemies. Careful and calculated use of this skill, combined with the previous two skills, can stack up some really nice AOE damage on many enemies at once. The most useful part of this skill is the AOE, but the temporary damage resistance and movement speed buff is great for escaping from a bad situation or just to temporarily relieve some pressure during a tough fight.

Laundry Bomb

Changes the equipped weapon to the Laundry Bomb Launcher. When the Launcher is fired, a Laundry Bomb is created, pulling in enemies inflicted with Laundry and dealing continuous damage.

Laundry Bomb Description:

Non-Attribute – Fusion
Switches the equipped weapon to Laundry Bomb Launcher. The original weapon returns when all bullets have been used or its duration ends.
Creates Laundry Bomb at the spot where the Laundry Bomb Launcher projectile hits, which tows a nearby enemy afflicted with Laundry and deals continuous damage.
Continuous damage increases with the number of enemies afflicted with Laundry.

How to use Laundry Bomb:

Laundry Bomb has poor base damage, but it can be increased by up to 200% by afflicting enemies with the Laundry status before using it. Therefore, we highly recommend using Valby’s other skill first to put the Laundry effect on several enemies (you need eight for the maximum possible damage buff) and then use Laundry Bomb to reap the rewards.

Water Intake (Passive)

When using skills while standing on water, Valby consumes less Mana.

Water Intake Passive Description:

Non-Attribute
When using skills when standing on water, MP cost decreases by 30%.
Puddles created by Valby’s skill are also considered to be water.

How to use Water Intake:

Water Intake is a simple passive that makes Valby’s skills cost 30% less MP when you are standing on water, including puddles created by Valby. While it’s not essential to do this all the time, keep this passive in mind when positioning Valby, as it will make it easier to manage your MP and avoid running out. Water Intake is Valby’s Passive Skill, so it is always active and cannot be toggled.

Valby Build Modules for The First Descendant

In this section, we will explain the recommended Descendant Modules for this Valby Build in the First Descendant.

Important! When equipping Modules on Valby, make sure that as many modules as possible are in a slot with a matching icon (top left corner on tooltip). This will half their Module Capacity Cost.

Your Module Capacity Cost limits how many modules you can equip, and can be upgraded as you level up your character. Different modules have a different Capacity Cost, which generally depends on how powerful the Module is. This is a balancing system to prevent players from only equipping the strongest modules and having a totally overpowered character.

Module Guides:

Module Basics – The First Descendant
How to Level Up Modules in The First Descendant
How To Farm Modules in The First Descendant
How to increase Module Capacity in The First Descendant

Valby Leveling Modules Setup

You should be able to get the following Valby Leveling Setup with approximately level 25-30. This is a good base setup to have before preparing to farm the max-level Valby Build for The First Descendant.

Technician – Skill Power Modifier increased
Skill Extension – Improves Skill Duration
Skill Range Mastery – Skill Critical Hit Damage increased, along with a slight increase to Skill Effect Range.
Shock Punch – Turns your Sub Attack into a Shock Punch. Equipping a Sub Attack Module increases the Max Module Capacity.
Nimble Fingers – Reduces your Skill Cooldowns.
Increased HP – Improves your Max HP.
Skill Expansion – Improves your Skill Effect Range.
Increased Shield – Improves your max Shield.
Increased DEF – Increases your Defence.

Valby Max Level Modules Setup

We recommend using the following modules:

Technician – Skill Power Modifier increased
Skill Extension – Improves Skill Duration
Technique Manual – Landing a skill attack deals a portion of Max HP as additional damage to the target. 8-second cooldown per target.
HP Concentration – Improves your Max HP and Critical Hit Rate.
Skill Range Mastery – Skill Critical Hit Damage increased, along with a slight increase to Skill Effect Range.
Shock Punch – Turns your Sub Attack into a Shock Punch. Equipping a Sub Attack Module increases the Max Module Capacity.
Nimble Fingers – Reduces your Skill Cooldowns.
Increased HP – Improves your Max HP.
Skill Expansion – Improves your Skill Effect Range.
Increased Shield – Improves your max Shield.
Increased DEF – Increases your Defence.

Why is the Skill Module empty? This slot modifies our skills. But the problem is all the modified variants are worse for our Valby Build TFD than the original. Therefore we leave this slot empty.

Best Weapons & Weapon Mods for our TFD Valby Build

In this section, we will explain the best weapons for our TFD Valby Build and the ideal weapon mods for them. The Thunder Cage Submachine Gun is the only important weapon for our TFD Valby Build Loadout. To max out all the mods listed here your Weapon module capacity must be maxed. If you don’t have enough slots yet, make sure to follow the prioritization queue.

How to get modules: Go to your map and then select Access Info on the top of your screen. Select Modules and type in what module you want to search for. Next, click on Acquisition Info and you will see where those have a chance to drop.

We recommend using the following weapon for Valby in the First Descendant:

Thunder Cage – Submachine Gun

The Thunder Cage Submachine Gun is an Ultimate weapon. The firearm emits an electric shockwave that creates the appearance of thunder being directed at the enemy.

Thunder Cage Description:

When defeating an enemy, the defeated enemy has a set chance to discharge Electric Shockwave that deals Additional Damage to nearby enemies.

Basic Info

Reload Speed:  -20%

Electric Shockwave

Trigger Rate : 60%
Damage Range:  3 meter radius
Additional Damage:  Firearm Damage x 150%

This is a high DPS weapon with a quick fire-rate. It suits Valby’s Build very well in The First Descendant due to Valby’s Laundry effect, which makes enemies weaker to Electricity damage.

We are using the following weapons mods for the Thunder Cage Weapon:

Rifling Reinforcements – Improves your Firearm ATK
Fire Rate UP – Improves your Fire Rate
Consume Magazines – Faster Reload and a tiny bit of extra Weak Point Damage
Action and Reaction – Significantly improves Firearm Attack and Recoil
Better Insight – Increases Firearm Critical Hit Rate
Better Concentration – Significantly increases Firearm Critical Hit Damage
Weak Point Insight – Increases Weak Point Damage and a bit of extra Firearm Critical Hit Rate

Prioritize first: Rifiling Reinforcements, Better Insight, Better Concentration, Action and Reaction.

Prioritize afterward: Fire Rate Up, Consume Magazines, Weak Point Insight

To max out all the mods listed here your Weapon module capacity must be maxed. If you don’t have enough slots yet, make sure to follow the prioritization queue.

How to get modules: Go to your map and then select Access Info on the top of your screen. Select Modules and type in what module you want to search for. Next, click on Acquisition Info and you will see where those have a chance to drop.

Nazeistra’s Devotion – Hand Cannon

Nazeistra’s Devotion is a great secondary weapon for the Valby Build. It works especially well if you’re good at aiming and are confident at hitting enemy Weak Points.

Hitting an enemy’s weakpoints with Nazeistra’s Devotion reduces their Defence by 30% for 3 seconds, indirectly buffing the damage of all of your attacks. A carefully-aimed shot from Nazeistra’s Devotion therefore makes for a great opener when fighting strong single targets.

Afterglow Sword – Sniper Rifle

Another great secondary weapon that can help to buff Valby’s damage if you hit enemy Weak Points. Hitting an enemy’s Weak Point with the Afterglow Sword will inflict Death Propagation, improving Weak Point Damage by 5% per stack. You’ll also get extra Critical Rate when hitting Commanders and Colossi with this weapon.

Best Reactor Stats for Valby in The First Descendant

Your Reactor is a very important item that determines your skill damage and can also include extra modifiers that buff certain aspects of your build. The better your Reactor is, the more damage your skills will deal to enemies.

We recommend prioritizing using a Reactor with a high Skill Power and Sub Attack Power. Secondly, look out for a Reactor that buffs Dimension and/or Fusion skills, as most of Valby’s skills fall into these categories. After that, look out for Reactors with a boost to your Skill Critical Hit Damage, which will improve the amount of damage dealt when you land a critical hit.

Also, look out for an Optimization Condition that you can easily fulfill with your Valby build. For example, we have a Reactor that requires an equipped Sniper Rifle to meet the Optimization Condition. Meeting the condition increases the Skill Power of your reactor, so it’s important to meet this whenever possible.

The name of a reactor can be determined by the following. For example a reactor with the name Tingling in it means it is good for anything that deals Electric damage.

The First Descendant Valby’s attribute is Non-Attribute and her skills use the following types:

Fusion (Bubble Bullet, Laundry Bomb)
Dimension (Plop Plop, Laundry)

That means you want to pick a reactor with the following names:

Materialized Mixture: Boost to Non-Attribute and Fusion type
Materialized Phase: Boost to Non-Attribute and Dimension type

Because our The First Descendant Valby Build focuses on damage with Plop Plop and Laundry we want to select the dimension-type. Therefore, we want to select a Materialized Phase reactor. However, any will do until you have a proper version of a reactor!

External Components

Finally, we have the best External Components for the Valby build in the First Descendant.

With your External Components, you will be somewhat subject to RNG, at least until you’ve played the game for long enough to find basically every possible combination with good stat rolls.

In general, we recommend prioritizing components with the following stats:

Max Shield
Max HP
HP Recovery
DEF

Valby’s Story in The First Descendant

An AoE dealer who moves around freely through her Water Arche. A terrifying torrent to her enemies, she’s always a refreshing ocean wave to her teammates. 

Valleys, oceans, and lakes that are drying… As a member of Ingris Environment Watch, Valby was always saddened to see Mother Nature become polluted by war. When she travelled outside Albion on pollution investigation missions, she saw rivers in Ingris disappearing one after another. The White-night Valley, where the sun never set, was now a gulch, and the Echo Plains had long turned into a swamp because of the Vulgus Kuiper mining. From the way things were going, would there even be a place left where humanity could live in peace if they won the war? She wondered, “Was that why?” Valby found a shimmering lake somewhere in the Vespers Woodland. Calling it the “Last Emerald”, she swore to protect this small glimmer of hope. Making it a home for plants and animals so that the ecosystem of Ingris could be restored. To Valby, the Last Emerald was truly her last hope.

But in times like these, hope was such a fragile gem. On that fateful day, Valby was gazing out over the lake as usual when she encountered the Order of Trueh that entered into Vespers Woodland. Having completed advanced military training, Valby fought off the Vulgus, as well as requesting support from the Descendant Corps. But the lack of an Arche teleportation device in the area meant that help was delayed, leaving Valby no choice but to defend the lake alone. However, even the lowest-ranked Vulgus was too much for a non-Descendant. After being brutally attacked, Valby was thrown into the lake.

As she sank into the water, Valby thought to herself, at least she could meet her end in the bosom of the Emerald. She was grateful to the lake for letting her dream of hope, even if for a little. But in the final moments, when her consciousness began to fade, Valby could not control her instincts to survive. “I want to fight again. I want to protect this lake. No… I want to become a great ocean that will swallow up every Vulgus there is…”

At that moment, a massive wave arose from the centre of the lake, devastating the surrounding area. The enemies were crushed by the immense pressure of the water and vanished without a trace. And where the lake once was, a mass of water in the shape of a human was thrashing wildly. It was Valby. At death’s door, she had awoken her Arche, and her ability enabled her to merge with the water and swim without end. She had become the Last Emerald itself.

Related Content:

TFD Gley Build
TFD Bunny Build
TFD Sharen Build
TFD Freyna Build
More First Descendant Builds & Guides

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