How to unlock The First Descendant characters

There are 10 characters to play in the beta.

Promotional art showing a character in a bunny steel armor.
Image via Nexon

The First Descendant‘s beta phase lasts from Sept. 19 to 25, featuring several co-op and solo missions, as well as 10 different characters to discover.

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Players have a lot to test out in the game before it ends, and characters are one of those elements. They all feature different strengths and weaknesses, with unique ability sets and strategies.

Players will unlock one character, the Descendant, among Lepic, Ajax, and Viessa, when completing the tutorial. Then, they’ll be able to unlock the others through various activities in the game. It’ll take them a long time to get all of them, however, so you’ll have to make it quick before the beta ends. Here is how to unlock characters in The First Descendant.

Menu showing Bunny character in The First Descendant
You’ll have to make Researches to unlock character Codes. Screenshot by Dot Esports

How to unlock The First Descendant characters

Unlocking characters in The First Descendant isn’t done via quests —not directly. You’ll have to launch a Research to get the characters you want and add them to your roster. In addition, you’ll have to wait until the Research is done (over 10 hours, usually).

Unlocking characters takes a long time because they require a ton of resources, as well as consequent amounts of gold for the Research to be launched. You can either buy those Materials or collect them in Missions.

Once you finish the tutorial, you’ll be able to unlock Bunny, the character you’ve already encountered in the game’s first mission, since you’ll complete missions that will reward the parts required to get the Research.

Dialogue option with Anais, a white-haired NPC in The First Descendant.
Anais will get you more characters —for a price. Screenshot by Dot Esports

To buy Materials and launch Research, you’ll have to talk to Anais. She’s an NPC located in Albion, the city that serves as the game’s main hub. You’ll find her by following her symbol on your map, four circles linked together by one.

Research menu with a Restored Relic in the background.
Gathering enough Materials is no small feat. Screenshot by Dot Esports

Research also serves other purposes. In addition to new characters, you can get Relic Weapons that will certainly significantly enhance your gear.

Unfortunately, the progress you’ll make during the beta won’t carry over to the game’s official release. So while testing out several characters is great, be aware of the fact that you will lose what you’re willing to farm for over the next few days when servers close.

Author
Image of Eva Martinello
Eva Martinello
Eva is a Staff Writer from Paris. Her part-time job is charging into walls with Reinhardt. She has been covering League of Legends esports and other titles for six years. She still believes in a Moscow Five comeback. She also fell into the MMO pit and covers FFXIV and Genshin.