The Tragedy of the Outer Ring
Honestly, the way people talk about Zenless Zone Zero Pompey makes it sound like he was just another disposable boss. He wasn't. If you’ve spent any real time in the Outer Ring during Chapter 4, you know that Pompey represents one of the most gut-wrenching moments in the game’s narrative so far. He was the Overlord of the Motor League. A leader. Someone who actually cared about the people of Blazewood, even if he looked like a guy who’d break your arm for looking at his bike wrong.
Basically, the tragedy of Pompey isn't just that he died. It’s that he was betrayed by his own, turned into a monster, and forced into a situation where the only way out was through us.
Who Was Pompey Before the Corruption?
Pompey led The Vanquishers. Unlike some of the other gangs we see, he had a code. He sent medical supplies and food to the struggling folks in Blazewood. He was the guy keeping the peace in a place that’s basically a wasteland. You've probably seen the "Armageddon" patch on his jacket—that wasn't just for show. It was a gathering of armies, a sign of his power.
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But then Lucius happened.
Lucius, that absolute rat, betrayed him during the Tour de Inferno. He didn't just stab him in the back; he left him to be consumed by the Ether at Cinder Lake. That’s where the human Pompey ended. The transition from a "just leader" to an Ethereal is one of the darkest parts of the Zenless Zone Zero lore.
The Boss Fight: Notorious Pompey Explained (Simply)
If you’re struggling with the Notorious Pompey boss fight in the Notorious Hunt or Deadly Assault, you aren't alone. He’s a wall for a lot of players. He’s fast, he’s aggressive, and he has these "performance points" that make the fight feel more like a dance than a brawl.
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Here is the deal with his mechanics:
You’ve got to use Defensive Assists. Seriously. The game basically screams at you to bring a Defense character like Caesar King. When Pompey uses his hook—that's your window. If you land a Defensive Assist right then, he falls. He’s actually remarkably vulnerable if you stop trying to just dodge everything and start parrying.
- The Backshot Weakness: It sounds like a meme, but it’s real. Pompey takes significantly more damage from behind. If you’re playing Jane or Burnice, you want to be circling him constantly.
- Performance Points: In the Deadly Assault version, you get extra points for interrupting specific attacks. If you aren't parrying, you aren't scoring.
- The Pushing Problem: One thing that drives people crazy is how far he gets knocked back when he’s stunned. A lot of players waste half their stun window just running back to him. Pro tip: fight him in a corner. If his back is against the wall, he can't slide away, and you can actually dump your ultimate without missing half the hits.
Why Is Everyone Talking About His Return?
This is where the community gets divided. There’s a massive amount of "Pompey Cope" happening on Reddit and Discord. Some people pointed out that his compendium entry or boss description mentions he survived the fall into the magma and still wanders Cinder Lake in his Ethereal form.
Wait. He fell into a lake of fire and exploded, right?
Well, sort of. In the world of New Eridu, Ethereals are weird. Even if his physical body is gone, his "resentment" or "will" might have formed an Ether shell. We’ve seen other characters like Harumasa’s teacher or Lucia’s father keep some kind of "imprint" of who they were.
The idea that we might get a "Half-Ethereal" playable Pompey is a popular theory. Imagine a character that can "Devil Trigger" into that massive boss form. It’d be incredible. But honestly? Don't hold your breath. HoYoverse has a history of making cool NPCs and then leaving them in the dirt. Just look at Signora from Genshin Impact.
The Sons of Calydon Connection
Pompey’s relationship with the Sons of Calydon is complicated. Caesar King ended up being the one to fight him at the end. It was a "passing of the torch" moment, but a bloody one.
The Motor League has always been about strength, but Pompey showed that strength without responsibility is just chaos. Caesar takes that lesson to heart. When you play as Caesar or Burnice, you’re essentially carrying on the spirit of the Outer Ring that Pompey tried to protect before Lucius ruined everything.
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Common Misconceptions
- Is he playable? No. As of Version 1.2 and into 2.0, Pompey is strictly an NPC and a boss.
- Did he really die? Physically, yes. His human self is gone. His Ethereal form (The Corrupted Overlord) is what we fight.
- Is he a villain? Kinda, but not really. He was a victim of Lucius. He's more of a tragic figure than a bad guy.
How to Actually Beat Him in 2026
Since we are looking at updated metas, the strategy has shifted slightly.
- Bring a Shielder: Caesar is still the gold standard here. Her ability to ignore knockback makes the Pompey fight a joke.
- Focus on Anomaly: Pompey is susceptible to Disorder. If you can stack Burn from Burnice and then trigger it with an Ether or Physical agent, his health bar melts.
- Watch the Mines: He drops landmines. Most people ignore them until they blow up. You can actually walk in and out of the radius quickly to trigger them safely before the fight gets too chaotic.
Pompey is one of those characters that proves Zenless Zone Zero isn't just about flashy combat. It's about the cost of living in a world where the very air can turn you into a monster. He was a "true bro" as Anton would say, and the Outer Ring is a lot quieter without him.
If you're looking to maximize your rewards in the current Deadly Assault rotation, start by practicing your parry timing on his "hook" move in the VR trainer. Mastering that single Defensive Assist will jump your score by thousands of points because of the Adjudication stacks it provides. Once you've got the timing down, focus on positioning him against the edge of the arena to avoid the stun-knockback issue that ruins most high-level runs.