InHonkai: Star Rail, the Wind element is often overlooked compared to other elements, as characters from other elements tend to provide more value in many situations. However, in terms of gameplay, team composition inHonkai: Star Railis more versatile and depends onexploiting opponents' weaknessrather than focusing on elemental reactions, as seen inGenshin Impact, another successful title by HoYoverse. Therefore, Wind characters should not be solely seen as support units like their Anemo counterparts, and as more characters are released, this distinction may become more evident.
In terms of gameplay, the Wind Element inHonkai: Star Railprimarily revolves around the application of the Wind Sheer DoT effect, which gradually decreases the HP of tough opponents through stackable effects. Currently, players have access to characters like Sampo who excel in applying DoT effects, and they can anticipate the introduction of more characters like Blade in future updates, each with their own unique kits and abilities. Given the diverse gameplay and team role focus of the current Wind roster, it is challenging to determine the value of each character in different situations. However, some characters may offer more versatility than others, allowing them to be effective in a wider range of scenarios.
Updated on 18th January 2024, by Elara Leclair:The Wind element had not received many new characters until the release of the game’s version 2.0 update, with only Blade and Huohuo being added up to that point. Nevertheless, these additions were still notable, as both characters are relatively strong 5-star options, catering to various player playstyles. Additionally, in the upcoming patches, players can expect more Wind characters to join the roster, with some on the horizon like Black Swan. This character is anticipated to shake the current meta while introducing more unique ways for players to enjoy the new gameplay content in Honkai: Star Rail.
Path:Nihility
Rarity:4-star
In terms of the story, Sampo is a mischievous character that leaves many players with the impression that there is more to him than meets the eye. However, from a gameplay perspective, Sampo, as a 4-star Nihility character, is often overshadowed when compared to other offensive support characters, especially other Nihility characters like Pela, Welt, or more recently, Silver Wolf. This is because Sampo’s team role differs from theirs.
Instead of providing debuffs to benefit the entire team, Sampo’s focus lies in applying DoT effects and weakness breaking, which may not be perceived as valuable by most players. Nonetheless, when properly built and paired with other characters that synergize well with Sampo, players can discover his significant sub-DPS potential. In particular, in the Simulated Universe, combined with the Nihility Path Resonance, Sampo can be an enjoyable character to play and experiment with. This is especially prominent when he is paired with DoT focusing characters like Kafka, where Sampo’s true potential can be realized.
Path:The Hunt
One of the first characters to join the Trailblazers' journey, Dan Heng is freely given to players to tackle early content. However, Dan Heng’s potential extends beyond early stages, as he can be a formidable single-target DPS character thanks to his Hunt path, even in endgame content. Therefore, players should consider properly building Dan Heng, especially if they don’t aim to obtain another DPS character like Blade, to effectively tackle challenging content such as Forgotten Hall, where enemies with Wind weakness can be encountered.
Apart from being a formidable DPS character, Dan Heng also has the advantage ofreducing enemy speedupon a Critical Hit after using his skill, which benefits the entire party. His Ultimate attack is further enhanced by this effect, allowing Dan Heng to deal more damage to Slowed targets. Consequently,he pairs well with Welt, who can increase the consistency of slowing enemies and create opportunities for Dan Heng to unleash even greater damage.
Path:Destruction
Rarity:5-star
Alongside Kafka, Blade is another highly anticipated member of the Stellaron Hunters who joins the roster in Honkai: Star Rail version 1.2. As a Destruction character, Blade possesses the ability to deal AoE damage and perform follow-up attacks due to his kit. Interestingly, his kitfunctions similarly to Hu TaofromGenshin Impact, as he scales with HP and receives a damage bonus based on this stat, while gradually reducing his own HP.
This design makes him a high-risk, high-reward character, especially in challenging content where defensive support characters are crucial to his performance. Characters like Luocha can synergize well with Blade, enabling him to maintain high DPS while also managing his HP effectively, although Blade has some self-healing capabilities as well. However, some players may encounter difficulties in finding suitable support units for Blade since he relies on HP rather than ATK, making characters like Tingyun less suitable for his playstyle. If this concern is not an issue and players enjoy such gameplay, Blade can be an excellent addition to their teams as a Wind main DPS character.
Path:Harmony
Bronya is highly sought after as one of the most desired 5-star characters in the standard banner due to her unique support abilities. Not only can Bronya provide a damage and Crit DMG boost, but she can also advance a targeted ally, allowing them to take an additional action within the same turn. This ability significantly accelerates the pace of difficult challenges, particularly incontent like Forgotten Hall, where completing battles quickly with fewer turns is essential for earning more stars and obtaining additional rewards. As a result, Bronya stands out as anexceptional support characterand arguably the best in the current game roster.
However, despite her numerous advantages and straightforward build, Bronya does have some limitations in her kit. Players should carefully manage skill points when utilizing Bronya, as her Skill lasts only one turn. While this issue can be alleviated by accessingher signature light cone, certain team compositions with characters heavily reliant on skill points may struggle with this drawback. Additionally, although Bronya is a Wind character, her Skill and Ultimate primarily target allies rather than dealing damage, limiting the benefits players can derive from her element. The use of her Basic Skill can provide some benefit through consistent critical hits, but its impact is relatively minor in her case.
Path:Abundance
The second limited-banner healer character to join the game’s roster is Huohuo. She showcases unique abilities in-game, combining some aspects from Harmony with exceptionally strong healing potential. In addition to healing all allies, Huohuo can dispel debuffs from all allies, a feature that proves significantly useful in certain content. She also has the ability to grant Energy to all characters, similar to Tingyun but in an AoE sense. Huohuo becomes an invaluable healer for teams that rely on utilizing Ultimates as often as possible, especially for DPS characters like Argenti, who depend on Ultimates for their main source of damage. While Huohuo may not have the ability to dispel debuffs from enemies or be as skill-point friendly as Luocha for her healing capabilities, they can still be considered quite head-to-head in utility, making Huohuo arguably the best Wind character up to date.
Honkai: Star Rail
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