I have been living in New Eridu long enough to know that a banner deadline is a quiet monster. Version 3.2, Their Secret Histories, closes on October 21, 2026. That leaves roughly three weeks to finish Claret, Roxy, or Nangong Yu before V3.3 resets the banner meta. If I want any of their Core Skill passives to wake up, I need Higher Dimensional Data. That material comes from exactly one place: the Expert Challenge. Each clear burns 40 Battery Charge. Unlock that node late, and I lose four to six days of Core Skill farming that no amount of Polys will buy back.
What Is the Expert Challenge and How I Unlock It
Expert Challenges are VR combat simulations run from the HIA Club on Sixth Street. A single run costs 40 Battery Charge and drops Higher Dimensional Data, the exclusive material for Core Skill passives and assists. It also gives Master Copies for W-Engine tuning and Dennies. There is no substitute farm. Without this node, a new Agent’s Core Passive just sits at Level 1 forever. I learned that the hard way with my first limited Agent. Not fun.
The unlock chain is linear and unforgiving:
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Clear Chapter 2 Commissions Let’s Go Bro! and Mechanical Love.
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Finish Soldier 11’s Agent Story Mole in the Hole.
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Answer the HIA text and speak to Lyla at the HIA Club.
Skip any step, and the terminal stays locked. I budget the cost honestly: three runs eat 120 of my 240 daily Battery, so drop tiers matter. Because Expert Challenge rewards scale with Inter-Knot Level, holding Backup Battery until Inter-Knot Level 50 is the highest-value play. The community consistently reports noticeably fewer materials per charge when spending it earlier. Trust me, waiting feels slow, but the payoff is real.
V3.2 Boss & Material Map: Which Expert Challenge to Run
I keep this table open on my second monitor. It saves me from running the wrong boss when I am half asleep.
| Boss | Material | Common Team Picks |
|---|---|---|
| Lumberjack | Mortal Cleave | Trigger, Soldier 0: Anby |
| Doppelganger Jane | Falling Fist | Burnice, Caesar, Jane Doe |
| Notorious Dullahan | Murderous Obituary | Ellen, Soukaku, Anby, Nicole |
| Wanted Enforcer | Crimson Awe | Lighter, Nekomata, Piper, Corin |
| Armored Hati | Ethereal Pursuit | Zhu Yuan, Qingyi, Lycaon, Billy |
| Typhon Slugger | Greta Data | Grace, Rina, Yanagi, Anton |
For current banners, Nangong Yu wants Physical Tactical Chips plus Buster Certification Seals, while Claret needs the new V3.2 Armorer Certification Seals. Before every session, I press the Reward Preview button inside the HIA terminal. HoYoverse applies mid-season drop-quantity patches, and static guides go stale fast. The terminal is the only source that never lies.
Full Material Cost Breakdown: Ascension, Skills, and Core Skills
Fully maxing one Agent from Level 1 to 60 with Skills 1–12 costs roughly 4.1 million Dennies and 9,500–10,000 Battery. That is about four weeks of natural recovery at 240 per day. I like to think of it as a second rent payment, except this one comes with anime sword sounds.
Three nodes absorb that budget:
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HIA Agent Promotion — Certification Seals: Basic x4, Advanced x32, Specialized x30 (Buster, Controller, Pioneer, Ruler).
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Tactical Drill — Basic, Advanced, and Specialized Tactical Chips for Basic, Special, Dodge, and Chain skills.
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Notorious Hunt (weekly) — boss materials such as Ferocious Grip and Living Drive for Skill Levels 9–12.
One bottleneck is not farmable at all: the Hamster Cage Pass for Level 12 skills arrives only through the Battle Pass and events. I plan around it weeks ahead. If I see a Battle Pass reward track with Hamster Cage Pass, I treat it like a limited banner. Missing it means my Agent stays one step away from full power.
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