Arknights: Gladiia's Base Skill Explained!

Special Thanks: ScifiGemini0616#3863, Luzark#8152

Anyone who has been playing the Under Tides Event and acquired the 6 Star welfare Operator [Gladiia] might have seen her Control-Center base skill and said to themselves.... what in the hell did I just read.

This is not exactly straight-forward to understand, so we'll go over exactly what this means.

Abyssal Hunter's: first off, this skill only applies to Operators in the [Abyssal Hunters] faction.  The current list of Operators in this faction can be found here. At the time of this writing (10/22/21), the Operators in this faction are Specter, Skadi, Andreana, and Gladiia (note that Skadi the Corrupting Heart is NOT in this faction)

Special Bonus: the bonus applies to any Factory that has an [Abyssal] Operator assigned to it. The Bonus is 5% when Gladiia is at E1, and 10% when Gladiia is at E2. 

If there is one [Abyssal] in the base assigned to ANY Factory, that Factory gets the bonus applied to it.  If there are TWO [Abyssal]s in the base assigned to ANY Factory, Each Factory that has an Abyssal gains TWICE the bonus for EACH Abyssal assigned to it.  If there are THREE [Abyssal]s in the base assigned to any Factory, each Factory that has an Abyssal gains THREE TIMES the bonus for EACH Abyssal assigned to it.

This is still confusing as hell as to read, so lets do some examples, assuming Gladiia is E2 and the bonus is 10%:

• Specter is assigned to Factory 1 -> Factory 1 gains +10%
• Specter and Skadi are assigned to Factory 1 -> Factory 1 gains +40% (20% from Specter, 20% from Skadi)
• Specter, Skaid, and Andreana are assigned to Factory 1 -> Factory 1 gains 90% (30% from Specter, 30% from Skadi, 30% from Andreana)
• Specter is assigned to Factory 1, Skadi is assigned to Factory 2, Andreana is assigned to Factory 3 -> Factory 1 gains 30% from Specter, Factory 2 gains 30% from Skadi, Factory 3 gains 30% from Andreana.

The maximum bonus that can be applied to each Factory is limited to 45% at E1 and 90% at E2.  Since there are only currently 3 [Abyssal]s that can add to this effect, the maximum bonus that can be applied to any single factory is 90% (if all 3 are assigned to the same factory).  So why is the limit needed? For when MORE [Abyssal]s get added to the game.  For example, here is a hypothetical situation for when 2 more [Abyssal]s are added:

• 2 [Abyssal]s assigned to Factory 1, 2 [Abyssal]s assigned to Factory 2, 2 [Abyssal]s assigned to Factory 3.  The total Bonus for each [Abyssal] is now 60%.  Factory 1 gets 120% from its 2 [Abyssal]s, limited to 90%. Factory 2 gets 120% from its 2 [Abyssal]s, limited to 90%. Factory 3 gets 120% from its 2 [Abyssal]s, limited to 90%.  leaving any 3rd factory slot open for even further increases.  

Imagine if the 90% limit didn't exist in this case!  those 6 Abyssals would generate 360% increase!

Special Interaction Rules: These are restrictions that apply to the skill (as of 10/22/21)

• Cooperative Will: Waifu's Base skill, does not stack and Gladiia's skill will take precedence over it
• Automation α (Eunectes, Passenger), Automation β (Eunectes, Weedy), and Bionic Seadragon (Weedy) : These Skills will not stack with Gladiia's, and will take precedence over it. In other words, the contribution of other Operators will become 0.

Fun Fact: On CN launch there was a bug where Gladii'a skill counted Weedy, Blue Poison,  Deepcolor, and Whisperain as [Abyssal]s!

Morale Drain: As something to keep in mind, Gladiia's first Base Skill [Tide Observation] INCREASES Gladiia's morale drain for each [Abyssal] not assigned to a Dormitory (which includes herself!), meaning the more Abyssals you have assigned in Factories to increase their productivity, the faster Gladiia's morale will drain, and the sooner she'll have to be swapped out of the control center.  The morale drain can be offset by putting Abyssals in Dormitories, as her morale drain will be DECREASED for each Abyssal assigned to a Dormitory (with the effect doubled if that Abyssal is already at full Morale).  However, putting an Abyssal in a Dormitory means they won't be adding productivity to Factories.

Should You Use Her? The answer to this will likely depend on how many [Abyssal]s you have, your current Factory roster, and your base rotations.  

• If you have only 1 [Abyssal], then absolutely not, since 5% (E1) or10% (E2) is too low and there are a ton of easily obtainable Operators that have at least +15%.  
• If you have two Abyssals, then maybe, IF you have Gladiia at E2 already.  if both Abyssals are assigned to Factories, each of them will provide 10% (E1) 20% (E2).  The E1 10% would NOT be useful (for the reason mentioned above), but the 20% might be useful, especially for players with more limited rosters. Veterans are more likely to have their base already fully operated by 20% or higher operators.
• If you have three Abyssals, then it is much more likely.  If all 3 Abyssals are assigned to Factories, then each will provide 15%(E1) or 30%(E2), so if you can replace even 1 Operator currently providing 10% or lower (in the case of E1) or 25% or lower (in the case of E2), then it would be an improvement.  

Keep in mind, however, that having more Abyssals will increase the morale drain for Gladiia, so depending on your rotations, it still might not be an improvement for you (if she hits 0 morale before you rotate her out).

Should You E2 her for her Base Skill alone? Absolutely not.  5 Stars are never worth E2ing for their base skills alone, since the E2 investment takes too long to pay back with the base output gained.  That being said, there are decent reasons to E2 Gladiia for her gameplay, so if players decide to do that, then the E2 base skill would be available for consideration.