I still remember the notification arriving like a paper boat on a flooded street—small, fragile, and carrying a message that would rearrange my entire weekend. 'Dear Proxy: the Exclusive Channel Calm Waves will soon be available. The tuning probability for Ellen (Attack, Ice) will be increased!' In that moment, I understood that my saved Polychromes were no longer mine. They were already ice crystals waiting to be spent.
The Calm Before the Tuning Storm
The event was a limited-time Exclusive Channel, and it ran from the game's official launch until July 24, 2024, at 11:59:59 server time. For anyone who lived through it, the dates are burned into memory. Here is the essential data:
| Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Channel | Exclusive Channel: Calm Waves |
| Increased S-Rank | Ellen (Attack, Ice) |
| Increased A-Ranks | Soukaku (Support, Ice), Anton (Attack, Electric) |
| Duration | Official launch to July 24, 2024, 11:59:59 (server time) |
| Stable Channel note | Exclusive S-Rank agents are not added to the Stable Channel Star Appearance |
| Pity note | Tuning on this channel increases the overall guaranteed signal count for all Exclusive Channels; other channel types are independent |
I treated the banner like a glacier calving into a moonlit sea—beautiful, inevitable, and loud enough to crack my entire savings plan. Every ten-pull felt like a small avalanche. Every A-Rank was a shard of ice. And Ellen? She was the blue whale beneath the surface, visible only when the water decided to part.
Call to the Stage: The Trial That Hooked Me
Before I committed my Polychromes, I tried the Call to the Stage trial stage. The requirements were simple: Proxy level 8 or higher and having unlocked the Events function during the main story prologue intermission. The trial ran alongside the banner until July 24, 2024, at 11:59:59 server time.
In that trial, I could use Ellen (Attack, Ice), Soukaku (Support, Ice), and Anton (Attack, Electric) in specific stages. Completing a stage's challenge for the first time gave rewards on the stage completion screen. That was the trap—or the gift. I walked in curious and walked out convinced. Ellen's frosty attacks carved through enemies like a chisel through warm wax, and Soukaku's support made the whole team feel like a well-tuned engine. Anton's electric punches added a rhythm section to the chaos.
The Pulls, the Pity, and the Poetry
Tuning for Ellen felt like trying to catch a snowflake on a warm tongue: you know the odds, yet you keep tilting your head toward the sky. I had saved, I had planned, and I had lied to myself about stopping after just one more ten-pull. The Exclusive Channel pity system was a patient lighthouse, sweeping its beam across every Exclusive Channel, reminding me that no signal is truly lost. Tuning on other channel types did not count toward this Exclusive Channel's guarantee, so every pull here was a deliberate step toward the shore.
When Ellen finally arrived, the screen did not explode. It simply glowed. A quiet, cold brilliance. I remember thinking that the banner's name—Calm Waves—was a lie. There was nothing calm about the way my heart rate spiked. But maybe that is the point: the calm is the surface, and beneath it, the current is strong enough to drag you under.
Why It Still Matters in 2026
Now, in 2026, the original Calm Waves window is long closed. The game has grown, new agents have arrived, and the meta has shifted more times than I can count. Yet I still measure new banners against that first limited channel. It was not just about power. It was about the ritual: reading the details, checking the pity, testing the trial, and then committing.
For any Proxy who missed it, the lessons remain:
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🧊 Limited means limited. Exclusive S-Rank agents do not join the Stable Channel Star Appearance during the event.
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🔁 Pity is shared across Exclusive Channels. Your tuning count on one Exclusive Channel carries over to the next.
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🚫 Other channel types are separate. Do not expect standard or other banners to contribute to your Exclusive Channel guarantee.
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🎯 Use the trial stage. It is the cheapest way to test a character's feel before spending.
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📅 Check server time. The end date is absolute: July 24, 2024, 11:59:59. No extensions, no mercy.
I still keep a mental snapshot of that banner. It was a snow globe of a moment: a small world of ice, electric sparks, and hope, shaken once and then left to settle. In 2026, the snow has settled. But if I tilt the memory just right, I can still see Ellen standing there, calm as the channel's name, waiting for me to press the tuning button one more time.