Honkai: Star Rail: Best Characters for Each Path

This article will look at the best characters for each path in Honkai: Star Rail

Overview

Honkai: Star Rail already has a massive assortment of characters, despite being released less than a year ago. These characters are stratified into classes, known as ‘Paths’ in the game. Having 7 such Paths currently in the game, we will be looking at the ones who are currently dominating these categories.

Path of Destruction

Clara: For the first contender in this list, we have Clara, the innocent and kind-hearted young girl, accompanied by the ancient mech named Svarog. The Path of Destruction’s versatility makes Clara and Svarog an extremely viable choice in the current meta. They can act as a tank, while also dealing massive damage to the opposition thanks to Svarog’s counter-attack mechanism.

Best Relic Set: Being a dealer of Physical Damage, the ‘Champion of Streetwise Boxing’ is naturally the best relic set for the duo.

Best Light Cone: Clara’s signature Light Cone is the best option for her, as ‘Something Irreplaceable' increases her attack power by 24%, and restores her HP by 8% at superimposition level 1.

Path of The Hunt

Seele: Seele is like the car that’s constantly overtaking you in the streets; it’s always her turn when she’s in the match. Thanks to her passive ability ‘Resurgence’, everytime she takes out an opponent, Seele will get a free turn with the added bonus of 40-60% ATK increase. This alone makes her an SS+ Tier DPS character in almost every situation.

Best Relic Set: The ‘Genius of Brilliant Stars’ relic set increases her Quantum damage by +10%, but the cherry on top is that the set ignores 25% of the enemy’s defense if they’re weak against Quantum.

Best Light Cone: Probably to little surprise, her signature light cone is the best option for her. ‘In the Night’ increases the wearer’s Crit Rate by 18%. Not to mention, the added speed bonus makes Seele even stronger than she is normally.

Path of Erudition

Jing Yuan: The seemingly lax General of the Xianzhou Alliance is a force to be reckoned with, both lore and gameplay-wise. Jing Yuan’s dominance of the battlefield shows through his AOE crowd control, which is what characters from the Path of Erudition are known for. And of course, the Lightning-Lord’s added damage makes every encounter a piece of cake.

Best Relic Set: The 4-piece ‘Band of Sizzling Thunder’ is considered the best choice for the General, as it increases Lightning damage by 10% along with increasing Jing’s attack by 10% after every usage of his skill.

Best Light Cone: His signature light cone, ‘Before Dawn’ counts as the best option for him, as it increases Jing’s Crit Damage by 36%-60% and increases Ultimate and Skill Damage by 18%-30%. A good 4-star alternative to this would be ‘The Seriousness of Breakfast’.

Path of Harmony

Bronya: As commander of the Silvermane Guards, Bronya Rand is proficient at making her presence known in the battlefield. Being the best buffer in the game currently, what makes Bronya good is her skill which grants a free turn to any targeted ally, buffing their Damage by 33%-72.6% as well.

Best Relic Set: The ‘Messenger Traversing Hackerspace’ Relic set is the best match for Bronya. It increases the Speed of all allies by 12% when Bronya uses her Ultimate, resonating perfectly with her kit.

Best Light Cone: ‘But The Battle Isn’t Over’ is the best light cone for Bronya as it’s her signature light cone, and you can get it for 600 Undying Starlight in the Starlight Exchange Store. However, a good 4-star alternative would be ‘Carve The Moon, Weave The Clouds’.

Path of Nihility

Kafka: Possibly the most popular character in Honkai: Star Rail, Kafka is currently the best choice for the Path of Nihility, providing constant pressure for the opponent with her deadly kit. Pulling enemies into her deceptively sweet webs, Kafka traps everyone in the opposing team with her ever-present DoT Lightning attacks, which happen automatically after every turn. Having Kafka on your team will ensure that you put constant chip-damage to the enemy, guaranteeing their eventual downfall.

Best Relic Set: ‘Prisoner in Deep Confinement’ counts as the best relic set for Kafka. I mean, the name should speak for itself, as it is pertinent to her personality. The set increases Attack by 12% and makes her DoT attacks stronger.

Best Light Cone: Her signature Light Cone ‘Patience is All You Need’ counts as the best choice for Kafka while a great F2P alternative is the 4-star ‘Fermata’.

Path of Preservation

Gepard: As the Captain of the Silvermane Guards, his resilience speaks for itself when it comes to the battlefield. Being able to provide constant shield to your entire team, Gepard will personally make sure you never require a healer in Honkai: Star Rail. Not to mention, he has a massive pool of health, so he’ll always be the last one to go down in your team.

Best Relic Set: For Gepard, the ‘Knight of Purity Place’ matches his kit perfectly as the set revolves around increasing the wearer’s defensive capabilities as much as possible. They can also be obtained very early in the game, so be sure to start farming early.

Best Light Cone: Gepard’s signature ‘Moment of Victory’ naturally makes it his best light cone, and similar to Bronya’s signature light cone, you can get it for 600 Undying Starlight in the Starlight Exchange Store. If you don’t have the commitment to save up, we understand, so a 4-star alternative for him is the ‘Landau’s Choice’.

Path of Abundance

Luocha: Being the latest addition to the Path of Abundance, Luocha comes into play with his aggressive healer playstyle. With his healing power scaling off of how much Attack he has, it incentivises players into investing more Attack into him, consequently making him a deadly damage dealer in the battlefield.

Best Relic Set: The ‘Passerby of the Wandering Clouds’ relic set goes well with Luocha, as it is indeed a set meant for healers. Not only does it increase Luocha’s healing power by 10%, it also regenerates a skill point for free at the start of every battle.

Best Light Cone: Luocha’s signature ‘Echoes of The Coffin’ is his best fit (shocking). It is currently the only Abundance cone that gives an Attack boost, so it fits into his aggressive healer playstyle perfectly.

A good 4-star alternative would be ‘Perfect Timing’.

And with perfect timing indeed, we conclude this article, showcasing the best characters of each path for Honkai Star: Rail’s patch 1.6. We’re excited to see what new additions could shift the meta, as all the characters listed here are incredibly strong and viable.