I never expected the refurbished Old Weapon Testing Ground to feel so electric. By the time I reached Jarilo-VI’s Administrative District and found March 7th waiting for me, the Interastral Tournament Festival was already roaring. I had just finished Battle of Wits! Herta Space Station! and every preceding Aetherium Wars quest, so my Aether Spirit roster was ready to be scrutinized. After a quick exchange with Wilder, I handed over my Aether Coin and officially entered the Final Showdown! Intergalactic Celebration! Adventure Mission. March 7th suggested we explore before the stage lights hit, and I am glad I did.

Pre-Tournament Prep and Mastery Marks

Before stepping on stage, I talked to the NPCs scattered around the venue. Most gave only flavor, but they disappear after each round, so lore hunters should chat with them first. Barrie was the exception. He handed out rewards based on the number of Mastery Marks I owned.

Mastery Marks	Name	Description
One	Auto-Repair Chip	Expansion Chip: After taking action, restores HP equal to 2% of Max HP per trigger count, up to 8 trigger counts.
Two	Sudden Evasion Chip	Expansion Chip: After entering battle, reduces DMG received by 90% for 2 turns.
Three	Incineration Shadewalker	A defense-type Aether Spirit whose Skill can reduce DMG received and absorb massive damage.
Four	Everwinter Shadewalker	A defense-type Aether Spirit whose Skill can restore its own HP and absorb massive damage.

The Core Defensive DoT Team

For Luka, Guinaifen, Silver Wolf, Giovanni, and the final Hook battle, my backbone stayed the same. I ran a survivability-focused damage-over-time squad that could slowly grind down opposing teams while keeping my own Spirits healthy.

Aether Spirit	Expansion Chips
Warp Trotter	Safe Mode, Efficiency Optimization, Deep Clean, Attack Interception
Aurumaton Gatekeeper	Saturated Activation, General Upgrade, Data Retrieval
Entranced Ingenium: Illumination Dragonfish	Wind Shear Loophole, Matrix Iteration
Silvermane Soldier	Firewall, Sudden Evasion

The strategy was simple: ramp up survivability through Silvermane Soldier’s Morale stacks, which can reach 60 stacks as each ally acts. The Aurumaton Gatekeeper debuffs enemies by cutting their damage and delaying turns. Warp Trotter keeps everyone topped up, and the Illumination Dragonfish applies DoT every turn. When the Gatekeeper enters Sanction Mode, it summons two more Dragonfish, tripling the DoT application speed.

Round One: Luka

Luka’s lineup was almost entirely Aberrant-type, except for his Mechanical-type Automaton Direwolf. He also brought the Incineration Shadewalker, Imaginary Weaver, and Voidranger: Reaver. Because Aberrant Spirits are weak to Mechanical types, my core team matched perfectly. Silvermane Soldier’s Morale stacks boosted resistances, damage, and speed, while the Dragonfish chipped away at enemy HP. The early turns felt tense until the Morale stacks started climbing.

Round Two: Guinaifen

Guinaifen brought Blaze Out of Space, Incineration Shadewalker, Wooden Lupus, and the Mechanical-type Illumination Dragonfish. Her team mirrored Luka’s in many ways, so I stuck with the same plan. The one real danger was her Wooden Lupus. When it used its Ultimate, it could summon a Shadow Jackhyena. I made it my priority target early so it never got the chance to complicate the fight.

Round Three: Silver Wolf

Silver Wolf truly lives up to her reputation as a hardcore gamer. Her team included the Voidranger: Trampler, an Overlord Aether Spirit, plus Voidranger: Reaver, Imaginary Weaver, and the Humanoid-type Vagrant. The Vagrant was the biggest threat: its Ultimate strengthens allies, and its Skill grants an immediate turn to an ally. That turned the normally slow, devastating Trampler into a fast nightmare. I focused down the Vagrant immediately, then cleaned up the rest.

Round Four: Giovanni

Giovanni offered a mixed-type lineup: Frigid Prowler, Automaton Spider, Everwinter Shadewalker, and Silvermane Soldier. Because there was no simple type counter, I stayed with the defensive DoT core. The key was the Overlord Frigid Prowler, which drains HP from its teammates to restore its own health and amplify its own damage. Attacking it first was pointless, so I started with his other units. The Prowler often needlessly hurt its allies, letting me thin out Giovanni’s squad before isolating the icy behemoth.

Penultimate Battle: Topaz

Topaz demanded a strategic pivot. Her lineup was mostly Humanoid units from the IPC: Senior Staff: Team Leader, Grunt: Field Personnel, and Grunt: Security Personnel, plus her loyal Warp Trotter. Since Humanoids are vulnerable to Aberrant types, I switched to an offensive Voidranger team.

Aether Spirit	Expansion Chips
Warp Trotter	Safe Mode, Efficiency Optimization, Deep Clean, Attack Interception
Voidranger: Trampler	High Load-Low Speed, Threshold Disruption, Sudden Interjection
Vagrant	Matrix Iteration, General Upgrade
Silvermane Soldier	Firewall, Sudden Evasion

The Voidranger: Trampler’s Skill inflicts 300% of its ATK on a single target, but then it suffers a 100% action delay. I bypassed that delay in three ways. First, if any enemy or ally goes down, the Voidranger instantly acts again. Second, the Vagrant’s Skill can advance the Voidranger’s turn. Third, the Sudden Interjection Chip grants an extra turn after the first action. With High Load-Low Speed boosting ATK by 90% and Threshold Disruption increasing damage against healthy enemies by 70%, I blew wide holes in Topaz’s team before she could stabilize.

The Apex: Hook the Great

After defeating the champion, the Mysterious Elite Player turned out to be none other than Hook. Facing Pitch-Dark Hook the Great meant two waves of enemies, each featuring two Overlord Aether Spirits. I returned to the defensive DoT team because trying to out-damage Hook was a losing battle.

In the first wave, I faced the Overlords Automaton Grizzly and Automaton Direwolf, with two Imaginary Weavers supporting them. I neutralized the Weavers first since they were most vulnerable to my Mechanical-type allies.

The second wave brought the icy duo of Everwinter Shadewalker and Frigid Prowler alongside the fiery Searing Prowler and Incineration Shadewalker. Just like against Giovanni, I exploited the Frigid Prowler’s tendency to damage its own allies, quickly removing the weaker targets before focusing on the now-isolated Prowler.

When the last Aether Spirit fell, the Old Weapon Testing Ground erupted in celebration. The Aetherium Wars Championship was the ultimate test of team building, turn manipulation, and patience. The Final Showdown! Intergalactic Celebration! remains one of my favorite Honkai Star Rail memories, and this exact plan carried me through every round.