Best Ajax build in The First Descendant

Ajax is one of the first characters you can choose in The First Descendant, and he’s the only Tank from this selection, which may influence quite a few players to make him their first pick. As such, it’s important to know the best Ajax build. 

Here’s everything you need to know about his best Module Setup, Reactors, weapons, and External Components. 

Best build for Ajax in The First Descendant

• Modules: Matrix Recomputation, Tech Specialist, Skill Range Mastery
• Reactor: Materialized Mechanics
• External Components: DEF, Max Shields, HP Recovery
• Weapon: Albion Cavalry Machine Gun

Ajax thrives in a team better than solo situations, so using Modules like Matrix Recomputation and Skill Range Mastery makes his teamplay strengths even more valuable.

Arguably, though, the most important part of the best Ajax build is increasing his DEF and HP, as the health of his shields are proportional to these stats. Materialized Mechanics also helps get more value out of his skills. There’s a more detailed look at his best build below.

Best Module Setup

Slot	Module	Description
1 (Skill Module)	Matrix Recomputation	Modifies Expulsion to cast a buff that helps allies to survive.
2	Increased DEF	Increases your DEF significantly.
3	Increased HP	Considerably increases your HP.
4	Shield Conversion (MP)	Increases your Max MP, slightly reduces your Max Shield.
5	Increased Shield	Boosts Max Shield.
6	Skill Expansion	Improves your Skill Effect Ranges.
7	Dual Claw	Increases Module Capacity, and changes Sub Attack to a dual claw attack.
8	DEF Accelerant	Improves Skill Duration and DEF.
9	Skill Range Mastery	Increases Skill Critical Hit Damage, with a slight increase to Skill Effect Range.
10	Tech Specialist	Boosts the power of Tech Skills
11	[Empty]
12	[Empty]

The most important Modules for Ajax are Matrix Recomputation and Tech Specialist. Tech Specialist adds more power to his Void Walker and Expulsion, and Matrix Recomputation slightly tweaks Expulsion to also be a handy support ability for his teammates.

I found that the last two slots were more useful as Flexi slots so you can change them as you need depending on the enemies you’re dealing with. For example, if you know you’ll be dealing with a lot of Fire damage, you can use a Fire Resist Module.

Best Reactor

The best Reactor for Ajax in The First Descendant is Materialized Mechanics because it boosts his Non-Attribute and Tech skills.

Your best Reactors will have a high Skill Power and Sub Attack Power, but you can also be on the lookout for Reactors which buffs Non-Attribute Skills. He struggles a bit when it comes to damage output, so it’s not a bad idea to look out for any Reactors that boost Skill Critical Hit Damage as well.

Remember to make sure you’re meeting the Optimization Condition when using your Reactors, like having a specific weapon type equipped. This will increase its buff even more, making the build stronger overall. 

Best External Components

External Components that boost Max HP and Defense are your best choice for the best Ajax build in The First Descendant.

As mentioned, his barriers scale with his HP and Defense stats, so it’s very important that you use External Components that complement this effect. 

Best weapons for Ajax

The best weapons to use with Ajax in The First Descendant are the Secret Garden Tactical Rifle, Nazeistra’s Devotion Hand Canon, and Albion Cavalry Machine Gun.

Secret Garden

• ATK: 23
• Fire Rate: 480
• Reload Speed: 1.6 seconds
• Effective Range: 32m
• Gardener: After using a Dimension skill, recover resources. Also, using a Tech skill grants Pest control increasing damage, fire rate, and skill power.

Secret Garden is a great weapon because it gives back resources when you’re simply using your Skills. Since he uses Dimension and Tech skills, this weapon is the perfect choice for the Tank.

Nazeistra’s Devotion

• ATK: 81
• Fire Rate: 150
• Reload Speed: 1.5 seconds
• Effective Range: 25m
• Fanaticism: On hitting an enemy’s weak point, inflicts Devotion Mark, which reduces their defense by 30% for 3 seconds. On hitting an ally, the ally’s shield is restored at the cost of your MP. 

This Hand Canon has an interesting take on friendly fire, given that you can help your teammates restore shields with its special ability. It was a little difficult to get full value with it while I used it, but if you hit your shots, it’s really strong.

Albion Cavalry

• ATK: 30
• Fire Rate: 451
• Reload Speed: 2.5 seconds
• Effective Range: 45m
• Cavalry: After hitting a stunned enemy, increase Firearm ATK. Hitting a Critical Hit on a stunned enemy inflicts stun.

Ajax’s kit largely revolves around stunning enemies, so it feels like the Albion Cavalry was made just for him. The weapon’s unique perk alongside Void Walk means that you can essentially continuously stun enemies, making this a great weapon for the best build.

Best Active Skill for Ajax

Ajax’s best Active Skill in The First Descendant is Void Walk because it damages and stuns enemies. It can be a great tool for when you’re getting overwhelmed, or when your teammates are struggling against more difficult mobs.

Hypercube is a close second. It’s a massive dome shield that gives you protection from all angles. It’s an extremely unique ability, and when you’ve got the best Ajax build, it becomes pretty impenetrable.

Abilities explained

• Event Horizon (Passive): Store Void Energy during battle.
• Orbit Barrier: Creates a shield in front of Ajax. Durability is increased proportionally to Ajax’s HP and Defense. 
• Void Walk: Leap into the air and strike enemies, stunning them. 
• Expulsion: Knocks enemies back. 
• Hypercube: Created a dome-shaped shield. Durability is increased proportionally to Ajax’s HP and Defense.

When I play as Ajax, I found that you need to play fairly aggressively to get value out of him. He does have Orbit Barrier and Hypercube to protect himself and his teammates, but Void Walk and Expulsion are strong abilities that can knock back and stun enemies. 

Like Bunny, he has a secondary bar to keep track of that stores his Void Energy. Once his Void Energy is full, his skills gain additional advantages, like being able to reflect incoming damage with his barriers. 

Managing his Void Energy can take a while to master, so he’s quite a tough Descendant to get right.

How to unlock Ajax in The First Descendant

You can choose Ajax as one of your starting characters, or you can research him later with Anais in Albion. 

If you didn’t choose him as your starter character, then you’ll need to collect his Enhanced Cells, Stabilizer, Spiral Catalyst, and Code from Intercept Battles. The first three need their own materials to research and unlock, so make sure you know what you need. 

He also has an Ultimate version that you can unlock, which makes him significantly stronger than he is in his base form. You must unlock it through research by visiting Anais.

He’s a strong Tank, but be sure to check out our tier list of all the characters to see where he falls in the meta. If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out our builds for Viessa and Lepic as well if you chose either one as your first character.