The Power of the Infest Debuff in Raid: Shadow Legends

In this guide, we explore the power of Infest in Raid: Shadow Legends. We break down how the debuff works, why it’s effective for defeating waves of enemies, which Champions utilise it, and where you’ll get the most value from using it.

How the Infest Debuff Works

Infest is a unique debuff that causes an explosion of pure damage when the affected enemy dies. Upon defeat, all remaining enemies take damage equal to 50% of the defeated enemy’s MAX HP, making it powerful for clearing waves. This pure damage cannot be critical. Against bosses and their minions, the damage is capped at 10% of their MAX HP, preventing it from dealing excessive damage in longer encounters.

Infest becomes even stronger when combined with Debuff Spread, allowing multiple enemies to become Infested and trigger chain reactions as they fall. This also makes target selection important, as defeating the highest HP enemy first can maximise the damage dealt to the remaining enemies.

Infest is particularly valuable for PvE wave content, where a single enemy’s defeat can quickly snowball into splash damage. This makes it highly effective for speeding up runs in areas such as Doom Tower, Dungeons, Cursed City, Grim Forest, and Faction Wars, especially when paired with strong AoE damage or Debuff Spread to maximise its impact.

Currently, Xenomorph is the only Champion capable of placing Infest, placing it onto a single target. However, as more Champions are introduced, Infest could become significantly stronger, particularly if future kits can place it on multiple enemies without relying on Debuff Spread. This would make the chain reactions far easier to trigger, giving the debuff much greater value in both PvE and Arena.

PVE Waves

Infest excels in PvE waves by turning each affected enemy that’s defeated into a source of additional damage, allowing you to quickly wear down the remaining enemies. This makes wave based content faster and more consistent, especially when combined with Debuff Spread or strong AoE damage.

Arena

In PvP, it can punish teams by dealing splash damage when an afflicted enemy is defeated. Target selection is key, as eliminating a high HP target first can maximise the resulting damage and leave the remaining enemies much easier to finish off.

Faction Wars

Infest is a great effect for Faction Wars, helping you clear waves more efficiently as each defeated enemy damages the rest of the group. This chain reaction can quickly snowball through difficult waves, making progression and 3-star clears much more consistent.

Bosses With Minions

Against bosses with minions, such as Ice Golem, Spider, or the Eternal Dragon, Infest still provides damage despite the splash damage being capped at 10% of each target’s MAX HP. When paired with a Debuff Spread Champion such as Michelangelo, you can quickly apply Infest to multiple enemies, allowing each defeated minion to contribute additional damage throughout the encounter.

Here we’ll be highlighting the Infest Champions in Raid: Shadow Legends, showcasing the strengths they bring. Currently, Xenomorph is the only Champion capable of placing Infest, but as more Champions are introduced, this mechanic has the potential to become even more impactful.

Accuracy & Speed Requirements

Accuracy and Speed are the two most important stats for Champions applying Infest, unless the skill specifically states the debuff cannot be resisted, such as Xenomorph while under Perfect Veil. Accuracy ensures Infest lands, while Speed helps you apply it before your team, or the placer begins defeating enemies. As a general guideline, aim for around 25 more ACC than your target’s RES, using tools such as the Raid Stages Tool to identify the requirements for each encounter.

Increase ACC buffs and Decrease RES debuffs can further improve consistency, particularly in higher end content. If your Infest Champion is also a hybrid damage dealer, be sure to invest in their primary scaling stat, alongside 100% C.Rate and strong C.DMG, while still maintaining enough Accuracy to reliably apply Infest.

Recommended Artifact Sets

Infest Champions benefit most from Artifact Sets that improve their Accuracy and Speed, ensuring they can consistently apply the debuff before enemies are defeated. Sets such as Perception, Pinpoint, or Feral are great choices, while Relentless, Reflex, and Impulse can help cycle back to Infest skills more often.

Once your Accuracy requirements are met, build around the Champion’s primary role. Hybrid damage dealers such as Xenomorph benefit from offensive sets like Savage, Merciless, or Lethal, while still maintaining enough Accuracy through banners, substats, or supporting sets to reliably place the debuff.

Infest is at its strongest in wave based content, where defeating one enemy can trigger chain reactions that quickly wear down or eliminate the rest of the group. Prioritise applying Infest to the highest HP enemy whenever possible to maximise the pure damage dealt when they fall, and pair it with Debuff Spread to affect multiple enemies at once.

Since Infest is currently limited to a single target application, timing is important. Ensure the debuff is spread before defeating the afflicted enemy to get the greatest value from each explosion, while supporting the team with AoE damage or crowd control.