The White Day 2026 event runs March 6–22, 2026 (ending 23:59 UTC). Your priority order is straightforward: stack locked Diamonds from event rewards, understand how they count toward pity, then decide whether to pull the limited banner launching March 13. Everything you need — reward tiers, pity math, spending sequence — is below.
Event Overview: Dates, Servers & First Action
Server maintenance completes March 5 (10:00–11:00 GMT+8) before the event unlocks. Available servers: Idol School, Shining Star, South East Asia Global (1001), and Middle East (1002).
The limited SSR banner doesn't open until March 13 — that's a full week to accumulate resources before any gacha decision is required.
Do this first: Redeem gift code IT7BQGSC1V (case-sensitive, all caps). Go to Profile icon → Gift Code → enter → Redeem. Expires March 12. Don't sit on it.
White Day 2026 Reward Tiers
F2P target: Consolation Prize. The 888 locked Diamonds feed directly into your pull budget and count toward limited banner pity. That's not cosmetic — it's functional.
The Best Couple Award requires roughly 5,376 Diamonds per event week in gifting expenditure. That's firmly spender territory. Only chase it if the exclusive rewards align with your long-term goals.
Locked Diamonds: The Mechanic Most Guides Miss
Locked Diamonds are event-sourced currency — earned from events, gift codes, missions, and login bonuses. They can't be transferred. But here's what matters: they count fully toward limited banner pity. Officially confirmed.
Don't treat them as second-class currency. A common mistake is mentally excluding locked Diamonds from your pull budget. They're not separate. Stack them aggressively before March 13.
The locked designation means they can't be used outside the gacha system — not that they're frozen until a future date. They're spendable on limited banners immediately upon receipt.
F2P pre-banner target: 1,000–1,500 locked Diamonds before March 13 through event rewards, the gift code, and daily missions. That's 6–9 pulls banked before the limited banner opens.
Spending Priority — Sequence Matters More Than Totals
Priority 1: Hit Your Event Tier Threshold First
Before any gacha pull, lock in your tier target. The locked Diamonds from event tiers feed back into your pull budget — but only if you hit the threshold. Spending Diamonds on pulls before securing your tier means you might fall short of a reward that would have extended your budget. Tier first, pull second. Always.
F2P: target Consolation Prize (888 locked Diamonds)
Light spenders: assess Lucky Award or Best Couple Award based on actual budget
Priority 2: Daily Missions and Event Tasks
Zero opportunity cost. Complete these before spending anything. Monthly F2P Diamond income runs 300–600 Diamonds from dailies, missions, logins, clubs, and codes. During an active event, you're toward the higher end.
One-time event missions are the most commonly missed source. They don't repeat — miss the trigger condition and that Diamond is gone. Check your mission log daily during March 6–12, when most event-exclusive one-time tasks are active.
Efficiency tip: Batch gifting actions. If missions require gifting specific idols, coordinate with your daily affection actions rather than making separate trips.
Priority 3: Limited Banner Pulls
The March 13–22 limited SSR is a support-type idol that scales with 2–3 skill upgrades, benefiting gifting, affection mechanics, and stage performance. Functional value, not just cosmetic. Still Priority 3.
What to skip entirely: Standard banner pulls during White Day. Standard and limited banners have separate pity counters. Pulls on the standard banner don't advance your limited banner pity. Every Diamond spent there during this window is wasted from a limited banner perspective.
Limited Banner Pity Math
Soft pity elevates SSR rates on pulls 20–28. Hard pity at pull 28 guarantees an SSR. The 50/50 worst case — losing the featured character flip and needing a second hard pity — costs 8,960 Diamonds total.
Critical: Pity does not carry over between limited banners. Whatever progress you build on the White Day banner resets when it closes March 22. Either commit to reaching hard pity before the deadline or save for the next banner.
F2P Pull Decision Framework
Pull if:
You lack a support-type SSR and this idol fills a genuine roster gap
You can reach 4,480 Diamonds combining saved Diamonds + event locked Diamonds + remaining farming time
You're not saving for a confirmed upcoming banner you value more
Skip if:
You already have solid support SSRs and the upgrade is marginal
You can't reach 4,480 Diamonds without exceeding your budget
A future banner is higher priority
The 70/30 rule: Never commit more than 70% of your total Diamond reserves to a single banner. If hitting hard pity drains you below that threshold, either top up to maintain the buffer or skip.
Once you're past pull 19, commit through to hard pity. Stopping at pull 22 or 25 means you've spent most of the cost without the guaranteed payoff. The math doesn't support stopping in soft pity range.
Free Diamond Sources During White Day 2026
Realistic F2P total for a dedicated player: 1,200–1,800 Diamonds across the full event.
Gift code IT7BQGSC1V — redeem before March 12
Participation Reward: 100 locked Diamonds (automatic)
Consolation Prize: 888 locked Diamonds (F2P-achievable)
Daily missions and logins: ~170–340 Diamonds across the 17-day event
One-time event missions: ~50–200 Diamonds
That's 7–11 pulls — meaningful progress toward soft pity, but not enough to guarantee hard pity from scratch. Full F2P hard pity from zero savings requires 7–15 months of consistent accumulation based on community data.
Top-Up Guide: When and How to Spend
The 3,280 Diamond pack is the sweet spot for dolphin-tier players. With the 20% event bonus, you're getting 3,936 Diamonds — enough to cover soft pity and then some.
If you haven't used your First Recharge Bonus, this is where it pays off most. Doubling the 3,280 pack yields 7,872 Diamonds at approximately 149 Diamonds per USD — the best rate available during White Day. Don't burn it on small packs (60 or 300 Diamonds). That bonus doubles once per account, ever. Save it for the largest pack you're comfortable buying.
VIP threshold note: If you're close to a VIP tier that unlocks a 20–30% recharge multiplier, hit that threshold before your main purchase. The multiplier applies to cumulative recharge EXP, so sequencing matters.
Timing: Recharge by March 18 at the latest. Last-day top-ups risk timezone processing delays and server load issues. Don't scramble on March 21.
For competitive Diamond-per-dollar rates during the event window, Idol Party Diamonds cheap recharge during White Day event 2026 is worth checking before you commit to a package.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Pulling standard banners during the event. Separate pity systems. This cannot be overstated — every Diamond spent on standard pulls is wasted from a limited banner perspective.
Ignoring locked Diamonds in your pity math. They count. If you're calculating whether you can reach hard pity and you're not including your locked Diamond balance, your math is wrong.
Burning First Recharge on small packs. One-time bonus, per account, forever. Using it on a 60-Diamond pack instead of a 3,280-Diamond pack is a permanent loss of value.
Pulling before securing your event tier. Fall 200 Diamonds short of the Consolation Prize and you've lost 888 locked Diamonds that would have extended your pull budget. Tier first.
Missing the gift code expiry. IT7BQGSC1V expires March 12. Check official channels for replacement codes if you're reading this after that date.
Stopping mid-soft-pity. At pull 24, you need 4 more pulls (640 Diamonds) to reach hard pity. You've already spent 3,840 Diamonds. Stopping now is statistically indefensible. Finish the job.
FAQ
What are locked Diamonds and do they count toward White Day tiers? Locked Diamonds are event-sourced currency that can't be transferred but count fully toward limited banner pity. Earned from event reward tiers, gift codes, and missions. Yes — they contribute to your pull budget on the March 13–22 limited banner.
How many Diamonds do I need for the best White Day reward? Best Couple Award (1,000 locked Diamonds) requires ~5,376 Diamonds per event week in gifting. The Consolation Prize (888 locked Diamonds) is the realistic F2P target and better value for most players.
Is White Day F2P-friendly? Partially. Participation Reward and Consolation Prize are achievable without spending. Top gifting tiers are not. Expect 1,200–1,800 Diamonds across the event — enough for 7–11 pulls, not a guaranteed hard pity from zero.
How does pity work on the White Day banner? 160 Diamonds per pull. Soft pity starts around pull 20. Hard pity (guaranteed SSR) at pull 28 (4,480 Diamonds). 50/50 worst case: 8,960 Diamonds. Pity resets when the banner closes March 22.
Should I pull if I'm at pull 19 with limited Diamonds left? Yes — commit. You're in soft pity territory and the probability math favors continuing. Pull in batches of 10, but don't stop before hard pity once you've crossed pull 19.
Does White Day banner pity carry to the next limited banner? No. Officially confirmed: pity does not carry over between limited banners. Progress resets March 22.
Pre-Banner Checklist (Complete Before March 13)
Redeem IT7BQGSC1V before March 12
Complete all one-time event missions
Reach Consolation Prize tier (888 locked Diamonds)
Check pity counter: Profile → Gacha menu → Pull history → count pulls since last limited SSR
Calculate total Diamond balance including locked Diamonds
Decide: pull or skip using the framework above
If you're planning to top up to reach hard pity or push a higher reward tier, Idol Party Diamonds top up discount March 2026 — especially with the First Recharge Bonus still available — offers the best Diamond-per-dollar rate of the season. Time it before March 18.
Stack your locked Diamonds, secure your tier, then pull with a clear budget. That's the whole strategy.