Season 3: Elite Stage Update

Hello, players. This is The Spike Cross team.

A new challenge begins with Season 3: Elite Stage. Meet three new players, face a different opponent each day, and shape your team’s playstyle with Specialization Nodes.

Key Dates

All dates and times below are in Korea Standard Time (KST).

• Pickup recruitment: September 16, 2026 (Wed) – October 17, 2026 (Sat), 9:00 AM

• Elite Stage matches: September 16, 2026 (Wed) – October 14, 2026 (Wed), 9:00 AM

1. New Players and Pickup Recruitment

Three new players are joining the roster. Each player will have a dedicated recruitment banner during the pickup period.

• Gitae: S+ / Middle Blocker (MB)

• Yuna: S / Wing Spiker (WS)

• Sejin: S / Setter (Se)

※ Gitae and Yuna are limited-time players, while Sejin will be added to the standard player recruitment pool after the Chapter 15 update.

Recruitment Rates by Banner

Gitae Pickup Recruitment

Yuna Pickup Recruitment

Sejin Pickup Recruitment

2. Pickup Recruitment Gauge

A Recruitment Gauge system is being added to pickup recruitment. Recruit players to build up your gauge, then spend it to obtain a guaranteed player.

The gauge required for your next guaranteed recruitment decreases in stages as you make guaranteed recruitments. The reduced requirement remains in effect for the duration of that pickup period.

• Standard, Position, and Colosseum recruitment continue to use Scout Points as before.

• Existing Pickup Scout Points can be converted into Recruitment Gauge.

For details, see the recruitment changes announcement.

3. Season 3 Event: Elite Stage

Challenge a different opponent each day and earn daily and weekly rewards based on your match records.

Requirements and How to Play

• Easy: Available at Gold Tier and above.

• Hard and Extreme: Available at Diamond Tier and above.

• You can attempt matches multiple times. Replaying on the same day lets you improve your best Star record.

• Your best daily Star records are added together over each seven-day period to determine weekly rewards. Weekly Star records reset every seven days.

Earning Stars

Meet the following conditions during a match to earn one Star for each condition.

Winning on Extreme also fulfills the “Hard difficulty or higher” condition.

Daily Rewards

Your first clear each day awards 25 event currency and additional rewards. Use an Extra Reward Ticket to earn rewards again.

Weekly Rewards

Earn the following event currency based on the Stars accumulated over seven days. Weekly rewards can be claimed after DAY 7 ends.

Event Missions

Complete Elite Stage missions during the event to earn various cosmetic items.

4. A New Match Format: Elite Rules

Elite Rules introduces timing-based defense and individual Stamina and Mentality management.

Timing-Based Defense

Time your Receive or Slide input to match the opponent’s attack.

• Receive: Returns the ball in a more predictable direction.

• Slide: Reduces incoming damage compared with Receive, but the ball may bounce in a wider range of directions.

Both defensive actions are graded by timing: MISS / BAD / GOOD / GREAT / PERFECT. The closer your result is to PERFECT, the less damage you take.

A successful PERFECT Receive negates damage, creates a chance ball, and restores Stamina and Mentality by 40% of their respective maximum values. This recovery does not apply while Exhausted.

Unlike the existing Counter Receive, a PERFECT result does not trigger the Immersion state.

Elite Rule – Receive

Elite Rule – Sliding

Individual Stamina

Each player has an individual Stamina gauge instead of shared team Stamina. The remaining Stamina affects whether the player successfully defends an attack.

Fixed Damage from Jump Floater Serves

When defending a Jump Floater Serve, you take fixed damage based on your defensive timing result, regardless of the serve’s power or the server’s Attack stat.

GREAT: 35% of maximum Mentality and maximum individual Stamina GOOD: 40% of maximum Mentality and maximum individual Stamina BAD: 50% of maximum Mentality and maximum individual Stamina

Mentality and Exhaustion

Each player also has a separate Mentality gauge. Defending with Receive or Slide reduces Mentality based on both the power of the attack and the attacking player’s Attack stat. The lower the defender’s current Mentality, the more individual Stamina damage they take when defending.

When Mentality reaches zero, the player becomes Exhausted. Mentality cannot recover during Exhaustion. Failing to defend while Exhausted reduces the remaining Exhaustion time. When Exhaustion ends, Mentality is fully restored and the Exhausted state is removed.

Defensive Positions and Rotation

Before the match, you can assign each player a defensive position regardless of their playing position. These assignments remain the same when the rotation changes.

Service order follows the usual rotation, and the serving team changes formation when serving. After the serve, your players move to their assigned defensive positions when the opposing team attacks.

5. Player Development: Specialization Nodes

Unlock each player’s Specialization Nodes and invest AP to improve their abilities. Build on existing strengths or try a new playstyle.

Node Types

• Offense: Abilities related to serves, net play, and spikes.

• Defense: Abilities related to slides, basic receives, and blocks.

• Identity: Abilities affecting match situations, such as Condition, second-touch set height, and speed retention.

• Weakening: Reduces certain enhancements in exchange for AP.

Nodes are divided into five tiers based on their effects: Growth / Enhancement / Tactics / Core / Unique.

Unlocking and Upgrading

• Spend Specialization Unlock Points to unlock nodes. Some nodes require a prerequisite node to be unlocked first.

• Invest AP (Ability Points) in unlocked nodes to increase their levels.

• Effects grow stronger with higher levels. Nodes at Level 0 have no effect.

There are nine types of Specialization Unlock Points, based on position (WS / MB / Se) and category (Offense / Defense / Identity).

With this update, Specialization Unlock Points can be earned through event matches and first-clear rewards in Season 3 Story Mode. Additional sources are planned through new content in the future.

How AP Is Granted

Players start with 41 base AP and gain additional AP based on their maximum stats and Breakthrough level. Maximum stats means the sum of the player’s stats when fully upgraded using EXP. For every 5 points above a total of 550, the player gains 1 additional AP. Each Breakthrough level grants another 2 AP.

Total AP = 41 + (maximum stat total - 550) ÷ 5 + (Breakthrough level × 2) (Stat-based AP is 0 for totals of 550 or less. Round the division result down. AP from Weakening Nodes is added separately.)

For example, a fully upgraded S-rank player with a maximum stat total of 585 and Breakthrough level 3 can use 41 + 7 + 6 = 54 AP.

Specialization Presets

Unlocked nodes are shared across all presets. Save and switch between AP allocations to use different builds for different situations.

6. Beginner Player Recruitment

Beginner Player Recruitment is being added to help new and returning players build their teams.

Earn Beginner Recruitment Tickets from Story Mode chapter clear rewards. Clearing through Chapter 3 awards a total of 40 tickets.

Spend the gauge earned through Beginner Recruitment to obtain a player of your choice from the featured pool. A guaranteed recruitment requires 40 gauge.

Available Players

• Setter (Se): Ayeon, Zero, Lisia

• Middle Blocker (MB): Sanghyeon, Hanra, Atis

• Wing Spiker (WS): Minjun, Isabel, Yongsup

Recruitment rate for the listed players: 3.5%

The pool includes players with a range of strengths and playstyles, allowing you to choose the player your team needs.

Players who have already cleared Chapter 3 will receive Beginner Recruitment Tickets via in-game mail when they log in.

7. New Event Login Pass

A Season 3 Event Login Pass is being added. Log in and claim a variety of items through the pass.

Early Check-In Costs

8. Permanent V Point Product Update

Permanent V Point products will provide more V Points, and new products will be added. Your first purchase of each product grants double the V Points as a first-purchase bonus.

Increased Amounts for Existing Products

Full Updated Product Lineup

Thank you for your continued support of The Spike Cross.