Policy Office Guide

The Policy Office is the backbone of long-term progression in Chaos Zero Nightmare. Here, you tackle Calamity Projects, stabilize the Ark, and earn essential resources that make your roster competitive. Understanding its mechanics and mastering its systems separates casual players from serious veterans.

Calamity Projects are high-stakes operations designed to neutralize threats to the Ark. Each project provides critical resources, including:

Every project contains three specific goals, and your performance is graded accordingly:

Higher performance means better rewards. Project rarity also plays a decisive role: high-rarity projects deliver more valuable rewards but demand precise planning, stronger teams, and sharper execution. Ignoring the mechanics or rushing through projects guarantees mediocre results. For maximum efficiency and growth, approach each project with strategy, not luck.

Every Calamity Project is tied to the Ark's four City Management metrics, which represent the overall stability and functionality of your settlement:

You can assign three Aides per project, each specializing in one metric. Their role goes beyond suggestions—they guide your choices toward optimal outcomes. Assigning an Aide for each metric is non-negotiable for consistent Grade A or S clears. Neglecting this step leads to wasted Days, failed goals, and suboptimal rewards. Aides are your strategic partners, and leveraging them properly is crucial for success.

Policies are the core engine of the Policy Office. They appear at set intervals once a project begins, and each consumes Days—a finite resource representing your limited timeframe. Timing and selection are critical. Poor choices waste Days and push you dangerously close to a Calamity, while strategic choices accelerate progression and optimize rewards.

Policy rewards include Policy Points, Promotion Materials, Research Notes, and Crystals. Certain Policies unlock side missions in battle missions, granting additional Coordinates of Record that accelerate overall account progression. Crystals are especially valuable—they're the most versatile currency in the game, primarily obtained from limited sources, and essential for limited banners and roster development.

Many Policies increase one metric while decreasing another. These trade-offs are intentional. Ignoring them is a rookie mistake. Successful players carefully plan their metric boosts, mitigating deductions while maximizing gains. For high-rarity projects, Policies can also be purchased directly from Nono's Shop to prevent failure, allowing even challenging projects to remain manageable with proper planning.

Maintaining metrics is just as important as boosting them. Any City Management metric that drops below 20 triggers a penalty affecting the entire Ark:

These penalties aren't minor inconveniences—they actively slow progression and can undo careful planning. Metrics can fall below 20 due to policy trade-offs or Calamity effects, making vigilance critical. Managing metrics isn't just about pushing them high—it's about preventing dangerous declines that can compromise the entire project. As projects increase in rarity and difficulty, careful monitoring and timely intervention become essential to avoid setbacks.

The Day of Calamity is a hard reset for the Ark. Displayed in the Policy Office as D-##, it shows how many Days remain before the next Calamity strikes. When it arrives, your key metrics—particularly those tied to current project goals—take a significant hit.

This reset isn't punishment—it's a deliberate mechanic designed to challenge your planning and test your strategies. Every completed cycle introduces a new project, new rewards, and fresh opportunities to refine your Aide selection, policy timing, and metric management. Experienced players treat each Calamity as an opportunity for growth rather than a setback, turning a potential obstacle into a stepping stone for account progression.

Assign an Aide for each goal. This is the single most important step for consistent Grade A or S clears. Skipping a metric creates imbalances, wastes Days, and reduces rewards.

Prioritize policies without deductions. Policies that trade one metric for another may offer larger immediate gains, but they consume more Days and increase penalty risk. Always secure stable gains first. Use deduction-heavy Policies only when you can safely absorb the cost.

Never skip Crystals. Crystals are the most versatile and valuable currency in the game. Obtained primarily from one-off missions and achievements, they're essential for limited banners and roster expansion. Grab every opportunity to collect them—delaying is a strategic error.

Upgrade the Research Facility aggressively. Research upgrades improve efficiency across the board: shorter policy intervals, stronger policy effects, higher project rewards, and easier management of deduction-heavy policies. A fully upgraded Research Facility transforms each Calamity cycle into a faster, more rewarding loop, giving you consistency in high-rarity projects.

By following these recommendations—smart Aide assignment, careful policy selection, disciplined Crystal collection, and proactive Research Facility upgrades—you maximize rewards, minimize risk, and turn the Policy Office into a powerhouse of long-term progression.