I still remember the night I finally pulled Kafka in 2026. The banner animation crackled like a storm trapped inside a music box, and there she was — a 5-Star Lightning character following the Nihility Path. Even after years of updates, her ascension recipe has not changed, and she remains a terrifyingly elegant support who paints enemies with debuffs and lets her team finish the job. I decided right then that she would not sit at Level 1 like a forgotten souvenir. I wanted her at Level 80 before the next reset. So I opened my notebook, sharpened my Trailblaze Power budget, and started hunting every ascension material she needed.

Kafka Ascension Materials

Kafka is a 5-Star Lightning character on the Nihility Path, so her ascension materials lean into the same eerie, void-touched theme. Here is the exact shopping list I used, phase by phase.

Ascension Phase	Level Range	Materials	Credits
1	20 → 30	5x Thief's Instinct	4,000
2	30 → 40	10x Thief's Instinct	8,000
3	40 → 50	3x Shape Shifter's Lightning Staff, 6x Usurper's Scheme	16,000
4	50 → 60	7x Shape Shifter's Lightning Staff, 9x Usurper's Scheme	40,000
5	60 → 70	20x Shape Shifter's Lightning Staff, 6x Conqueror's Will	80,000
6	70 → 80	35x Shape Shifter's Lightning Staff, 9x Conqueror's Will	160,000

If you add it all up, the total is a mountain of Credits, but the real bottleneck is the rare Shape Shifter's Lightning Staff. Farming it felt like trying to fill a bathtub with a teaspoon while the drain was open — possible, but only if you commit.

Where To Find Kafka Ascension Materials

Thief's Instinct, Usurper's Scheme, and Conqueror's Will

These three materials come from the Antimatter Legion. My favorite hunting ground is Herta Space Station, especially the Storage Zone. The enemies look like either humanoid figures or floating purple spheres. I fought Stormbringer, Voidranger: Distorter, Voidranger: Eliminator, Baryon, and their friends until my team saw purple in their sleep.

Other routes:

• Simulated Universe enemies can drop them, but it is inconsistent. Treat it like a bonus, not a plan.

• Assignment Rewards on your phone: choose 'Destruction of the Destroyer' under Character Materials.

• Embers Exchange: buy 3 Thief's Instincts for 4 Undying Embers each.

• Omni-Synthesizer Material Exchange: convert other character ascension materials into Thief's Instinct or Usurper's Scheme.

Shape Shifter's Lightning Staff

This one comes from Stagnant Shadow: Shape of Doom in Stargazer Navalia, a region in The Xianzhou Luofu. Each run costs at least 30 Trailblaze Power. Some enemies resist Lightning or Wind, so do not bring a team that only knows how to zap and gust. I learned that lesson after watching my Lightning DPS hit like a wet noodle.

You can also use the Omni-Synthesizer's Material Exchange, but you must sacrifice other ascension materials such as Endotherm Chitin, Gelid Chitin, and more. I only did this when I was a few staffs short and impatient.

Credits

Credits are the common currency, so they show up everywhere. I got mine from missions, Assignment Rewards — especially 'The Invisible Hand' — and the Calyx (Golden): Bud of Treasures challenge in the Great Mine region of Jarilo-IV. Credits evaporate like morning frost under a debt collector's breath, so I always run the golden calyx a few extra times before a big ascension push.

My 2026 Kafka Prep Routine

Here is the routine I wish I had followed from day one:

1. ✅ Pre-farm Thief's Instinct from Herta Space Station while doing daily missions.

2. ⚡ Spend Trailblaze Power on Shape of Doom only after checking my team's elemental coverage.

3. 🎭 Use Assignment Rewards overnight for passive materials.

4. 💰 Run Calyx (Golden) whenever I am short on Credits.

5. 🔄 Save Omni-Synthesizer exchanges for emergencies, not as a main source.

By the time I finished, Kafka stood at Level 80 with a smirk that said she had been worth every run. In 2026, she is still a character who turns a battlefield into a stage — and my job is simply to make sure the stage lights stay on. If you are building her now, take it from me: the grind is real, but so is the payoff.