Rosanna: The Investigator Dealing Deadly Hands and Insane Odds

Overview

Rosanna is a 5-star Legendary Fire hero from the Investigator family, originally released in April 2025 via the Shadow Summon. As a Ranger, she fits the archetype of a high-damage dealer who prefers to bypass defenses rather than break them down slowly. She operates at Fast mana speed, making her an immediate threat on the battlefield.

Her kit revolves around high burst damage and the volatile Insanity mechanic. She is a gambler's dream (or nightmare), capable of wiping out entire teams with a lucky streak of hits or simply deleting a single target if they are unfortunate enough to be the last one standing. While she hails from the early 2025 era, her damage potential keeps her relevant, provided you can handle the madness she brings to the table.

Hero Art & Visuals

Rosanna embraces a sleek, noir-detective aesthetic that screams "private investigator who knows too much." Clad in a trench coat and fedora, wielding a comically large firearm that looks like it could blow a hole through a tank, she exudes confidence and danger. The art style is polished, with a nice balance of shadows and vibrant red accents that tie into her element. It's a refreshing look that leans into pulp fiction tropes rather than high fantasy armor. She looks like she’s about to solve a mystery by shooting it, which, to be fair, is a valid strategy in this game.

General Info

Hero Stats

When comparing Rosanna to the bleeding edge of the meta (December 2025), her stats are starting to show a slight age gap, but they are by no means obsolete.

• Attack (1233): This is still a very respectable base attack, though newer hitters like Lin Chong or Ginger C1 are pushing past the 1300 mark. With Limit Breaks, she remains a top-tier damage dealer.
• Defense (1159) & Health (2154): Her bulk is solid. While she isn't a meat shield like the latest tanks pushing 1300+ defense and 2300+ health, she can take a hit, especially with the Investigator family bonus.

She is clearly built as an offensive glass cannon that isn't actually made of glass.

Special Skill: Last Words

Analysis: "Last Words" is a skill that demands you play the odds.

1. The Anchor Hit: It starts with a massive 500% damage to a single target. At Fast speed, this is a top-tier snipe that can delete or severely maim key threats.
2. The Chain Reaction: The 80% chance for additional hits is where the magic happens. 80% is a very high probability. In a perfect scenario, she hits 4 extra times. If only one enemy is alive (or it's a Titan), she can theoretically hit the same target multiple times, turning her into a single-target nuke dealing up to 1500% damage (500% + 4x ~250%).
3. The Madness: The Insanity application is potent. 20 Insanity per hit means if she chain-hits the same target (or spreads it around), she disrupts enemy casting.
4. The Cost: She inflicts 50 Insanity on herself. This is the drawback. Two casts without cleansing or healing (which removes Insanity) puts her at risk of casting on her own team.

By the Numbers

Let's break down the math behind the madness.

• Mana Speed: Fast. She requires 8 tiles to charge, or 7 with a level 29 mana troop/magic troop, making her extremely snappy.
• Damage Potential:
  • Base Hit: 500%.
  • Minor Hits: Typically 50% of the base potency, so roughly 250%.
  • Probability Chain:
    • Chance for 1st extra hit: 80%
    • Chance for 2nd extra hit: 64% (0.8 * 0.8)
    • Chance for 3rd extra hit: 51.2%
    • Chance for 4th extra hit: ~41%
  • Average Damage Output: On average, you can expect about 2.36 extra hits. This brings her average total damage to roughly 1090% spread across enemies. That is monstrous for Fast mana.
• Insanity Math:
  • She gives herself 50 Insanity.
  • She gives enemies 20 per hit.
  • A single enemy hit 5 times would receive 100 Insanity, instantly capping them (if the mechanic allows stacking on one target in that specific manner).

Family Bonus, Passives, Aether Power & Unique Abilities

Family Bonus

The Investigator Family bonus is fantastic for stat padding.

• 1/2/3 Heroes: +20% / +30% / +40% Attack OR Defense OR Health.
• This is a massive flat stat boost. Even running her solo gives a +20% boost to one of her stats (likely Attack given her role), pushing her damage even further. It helps mitigate power creep significantly.

Passives

Note: Rosanna notably lacks a passive skill. In an era where heroes come with two or three passives (like "Resist Bleed" or "Mana on Damage"), this feels like a missed opportunity and makes her feel slightly "lighter" than her contemporaries.

Aether Power

Attack Up is the perfect Aether Power for her. It grants an additional +20% attack for the first 6 turns. Since she is Fast speed, she will almost certainly fire within this window, capitalizing on the boost for her initial nuke.

Legacy & Modern Relevance

• Historical Context: Upon release, Rosanna was seen as a high-risk, high-reward sniper. The community was divided on the Insanity mechanic—some loved the disruption, others hated the self-sabotage.
• Power Creep Analysis: By late 2025 standards, her raw stats have dipped slightly below the "God Tier" of the newest releases (like the Titan Hunters or Three Kingdoms expansions), but her damage percentages keep her competitive. 500% at Fast speed never really goes out of style.
• Modern Viability Verdict: Rosanna remains Highly Viable, particularly on offense. Her ability to dismantle teams relies on RNG, which is less reliable for defense, but in the hands of a player who can target the snipe, she is a lethal tool. She is not a "must-have" for every situation, but she is a "glad I have her" for wars and raids.

Emblem Path Analysis

Rosanna is a Ranger, which grants her the Pierce talent (chance to bypass defensive buffs). This is crucial for a sniper, ensuring her 500% hit doesn't bounce off a Riposte or get mitigated by Defense Up.

The Gunslinger (Recommended)

• Path: Attack > Health > Defense
• Pros: Maximizes the damage of her primary 500% hit and the subsequent minor hits. Every point of attack scales significantly with her high percentages.
• Cons: Slightly squishier, though her base stats and Family Bonus help compensate.

The Survivor

• Path: Defense > Health > Attack
• Pros: Keeps her alive longer to fire multiple times, which is risky due to self-Insanity stacking.
• Cons: Sacrifices the burst damage that is her main selling point.

Final Recommendation

For most players, the Gunslinger (Attack) path is the only logical choice. You bring Rosanna to kill things quickly, not to tank hits.

Strengths

• Massive Burst Damage: 500% base hit plus potential for 1000% more in minor hits.
• Fast Mana: She puts pressure on the enemy immediately.
• Ranger Class: Bypassing defensive buffs ensures her damage sticks.
• Insanity Disruption: Can accidentally (or intentionally) shut down enemy specials via Insanity.
• Family Bonus: Huge stat stick potential just for being on the team.

Weaknesses

• RNG Dependent: Sometimes she hits once and stops. 80% is high, but we've all missed 90% shots in XCOM.
• Self-Insanity: She becomes a liability to her own team after firing twice if you don't manage the Insanity.
• No Passive: Lacks the utility/protection of modern passives.
• Random Targeting: You can't control where the extra hits go.

Best Game Modes

• Raids & War Offense: Excellent for picking off key targets or cleaning up weakened teams.
• Titans: High tile damage and a special that can hit the single target multiple times (potentially) make her a solid choice.
• Undead Horde: She shines where you need to kill things fast before they overwhelm you.

Advanced Strategy & Team Compositions

Sample Team Ideas

• The Investigator Pair: Rosanna + Burton (or another Investigator). The family bonus ramps up, making them both stat monsters.
• The Speed Kill: Rosanna + Adelitza + Deadboot. A full Fast/Very Fast team designed to wipe 2-3 enemies before the board even develops.
• Insanity Control: Pair her with a healer who can cleanse or reset effects (if mechanics allow) or simply win before the Insanity backfires. Note that Insanity is tricky to cleanse, usually requiring healing or specific counters.

Counters & Anti-Synergies

• Counters: Heroes who reflect Red (though she can bypass) or heroes who punish multi-hitters.
• Anti-Synergy: Do not pair her with other heroes who inflict Self-Insanity unless you have a distinct plan to manage it, or you risk your entire team going mad.

Advice for New Players

If you pulled Rosanna early, congratulations. She is a carry hero. Focus on maxing her Attack. Don't worry too much about the Insanity downside in early map stages; the battles won't last long enough for it to matter. She hits hard enough to solve most problems instantly.

Advice for Veterans

Rosanna is a luxury offensive tool. She is worth the tonics if you lack a premiere Red sniper. However, be wary of using Alpha Aethers on her unless you are fully committed to the Investigator family synergy. There are safer, more consistent heroes, but few are as fun when the dice roll your way.

Community Corner: Hot Takes & History

When Rosanna dropped, the community reaction was mixed. Many players were disappointed by the lack of a passive skill, calling it a "double nerf" combined with the removal of a small mana gain for allies that was present in Beta.

• One user noted: "That these two cards Rosanna and a newer hero are the same rarity should be against the law... It’s probably good that they removed the mana gain. But it’s also a good indicator for what’s to come."
• Another player highlighted her potential: "If she targets only one enemy with her 5 hits then it’s an instant kill... Doing the math after her first hit followed by the 4 minor hits damage is around 5k. That’s crazy."

The consensus? She's not the "strongest of the insanity lot," but she's definitely the one with the biggest gun.

Final Thoughts

Rosanna is the embodiment of "Spray and Pray." She brings a tommy gun to a knife fight and holds the trigger down until it clicks empty. While she lacks the sophisticated passives of the newest heroes, her raw damage output and Fast speed keep her in the conversation. Use her when you feel lucky, or when you just want to watch the world burn (literally).

Verdict: A thrilling, high-damage offensive hero who rewards risk-takers.