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Overview
Hotori is an S-Rank Cosmos Esper in Neverness to Everness. She is the Shopkeeper of Eibon and wields an Umbrella Katana, a concealed blade hidden within an elegant parasol. Her birthday is December 20.
Hotori is affiliated with the Eibon Antique Shop and serves as its elegant proprietress. She possesses sharp financial acumen and a deep understanding of time and the treasures that pass through her shop. Hotori is known for enjoying strong drinks and carries herself with a composed, refined demeanor at all times.
Backstory
As the shopkeeper of Eibon, Hotori oversees the day-to-day operations of the antique shop while maintaining its connections to the broader Esper community in Hethereau. Her knowledge of antiques extends beyond mere commerce; she understands the temporal significance of objects and their relationship to Anomaly phenomena.
Hotori was unplayable during the game's beta testing phases, making her one of the most anticipated characters at launch. She also received a significant design redesign between early development and release, with her final appearance reflecting a more refined and elegant aesthetic.
Combat Abilities
Hotori's combat kit revolves around her Non-Closed Timepiece mechanic, a clockwise-rotating energy system that powers her time manipulation abilities. She is a support Esper who provides team healing, time-stop crowd control, and damage amplification through her recording and replay mechanics.
Ability | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
Basic Attack | Misty Moon Style | Performs up to 5 consecutive attacks with her umbrella katana. |
Skill | Present Replay | No cooldown. When Non-Closed Timepiece energy exceeds 60, deals 7 instances of Cosmos DMG to the surrounding area while recording team attacks and skills for 5 seconds (max 3 recordings). |
Ultimate | World's Tide | Requires full timepiece energy. Deals 10 instances of Cosmos DMG and activates time stop mode. Hotori draws the katana from her umbrella and replays recorded attacks, building momentum toward a finishing blow at 10 hits. |
Shopkeeper's Authority | Throws her umbrella at the target, dealing 1 instance of Cosmos DMG. | |
Core Mechanic | Non-Closed Timepiece | A clockwise-rotating energy mechanic that accumulates energy over time. Regularly restores HP to the entire team based on accumulated energy. |
Passive 1 | Ghost Orchid Crest | During time stop, Lebenstamm attacks continue without pause, allowing companion projectiles to deal damage even while enemies are frozen. |
Passive 2 | All Treasures Under Heaven | Each timepiece hand movement grants +3% team health recovery (based on Hotori's Max HP). |
Passive 3 | Frozen Snow Ritual | Out of battle, hold the basic attack button to slow time when energy is above 0. This exploration ability costs energy to maintain. |
Awakening
Node | Effect |
|---|---|
A1 | Present Replay and World's Tide restore 15% of Hotori's Max HP on activation. |
A2 | +30% damage dealt during time stop, making the ultimate a significant damage window. |
A5 | Against a single enemy, grants +15% damage to the entire team, boosting focused single-target encounters. |
A6 | Ignores 30% of enemy DEF during time stop, allowing Hotori to shred through armored targets. |
Trivia
Hotori's umbrella katana is a reference to traditional Japanese shikomizue (concealed sword canes), fitting her elegant aesthetic.
The time stop mechanic makes her one of the few characters whose abilities affect the flow of in-game time, connecting to the Cosmos element's thematic association with space and time.
Her Frozen Snow Ritual passive provides exploration utility similar to Lacrimosa's bat form, but focused on time manipulation rather than flight.
The recording and replay mechanic (Present Replay into World's Tide) encourages players to use powerful team abilities just before activating Hotori's ultimate to maximize replayed damage.
Hotori was one of the most requested playable characters during beta, as players could see her in the shop but not play as her.