Honkai: Star Rail | Tier List (As of April 2023)

A Tier

BAILU: The Ultimate Healer

• Pros:
  • Can heal 2 allies with her skill and the whole team with her ultimate.
  • Provides a buff of Invigoration that heals a teammate when they get attacked.
  • Can resurrect a defeated team member once per battle.
  • Increases max health of overhealed teammates.
• Cons:
  • Difficult to obtain as she is a limited unit.
  • May be redundant if you already have Natasha on your team.
• Overall:
  • Bailu is the strongest healer in the game and can make even the toughest fights in the Simulated Universe a cakewalk.
  • However, obtaining her can be challenging and if you already have Natasha, her usefulness may be limited.

CLARA: The Versatile Tank

• Pros:
  • Has a unique tanking ability with her companion, Svarog, which allows her to counter-attack enemies who attack her and mark them for her skill to hit multiple enemies.
  • Her ultimate reduces incoming damage and allows her to counter-attack enemies if any of her teammates get hit.
  • Has a flexible Trace that can self-cleanse her if she gets attacked.
  • One of the few Physical damage dealers in the game, making her useful for reducing Toughness.
  • Can deal increased damage when facing 3 or more enemies, making her ideal for certain battles.
• Cons:
  • Relies on getting hit by enemies to deal damage, which can make her damage output fluctuate and is not always reliable.
  • Doesn’t have a reliable way to generate energy for her ultimate, making it difficult to use consistently.
  • Her tanking ability is not as effective against enemies that deal with AoE attacks, which can make her vulnerable in those situations.
  • Can be outclassed by other tanks in the game that have more reliable damage output or better tanking abilities.
• Overall:
  • Clara is an interesting tank with a unique ability that can be effective in certain situations, but her reliance on being hit by enemies and lack of energy generation can limit her effectiveness.

GEPARD: The ultimate shielder

• Pros:
  • Gepard can summon a massive ice wall to protect the team.
  • His skill has a high chance to Freeze an enemy, which forces them to skip one turn.
  • Gepard’s ultimate ability applies a shield on everyone.
  • He has a talent that allows him to self-revive when defeated and restores his energy to full once per battle.
  • His first Trace grants him increased Taunt, making enemies more likely to attack him.
• Cons:
  • Some bosses and elite enemies may have resistance to Freeze.
  • Gepard’s ultimate ability does not deal damage.
• Overall:
  • Gepard is an excellent tank unit in the game, providing essential protection to the team by summoning a massive ice wall and applying a shield on everyone. His skill has a high chance to Freeze enemies, although some bosses and elite enemies may resist it.
  • Additionally, his first Trace grants him increased Taunt, making him a valuable asset as he can take hits and protect the other units. While his ultimate ability does not deal damage, Gepard can still chip away at the enemies’ Toughness using his basic attack and skill.
  • His talent that allows him to self-revive when defeated and restore his energy to full once per battle is also a valuable addition to any team. Overall, Gepard is a great choice for those looking for an Ice Tank unit.

PELA: The Situational Buff-Removing Unit

• Pros:
  • Can remove buffs from enemies, which is unique to her.
  • Skill removes nasty enemy buffs and deals damage.
  • Ultimate attacks everyone and reduces enemy DEF, allowing for increased damage from the team.
  • Talent allows her to regain energy if she successfully inflicts debuff on enemies.
  • Technique reduces enemy DEF at the start of the battle.
• Cons:
  • Limited use in situations where enemy buffs are not a problem.
• Overall:
  • Pela is a strong situational unit that is valuable in situations where enemy buffs need to be removed. Her skill can be a godsend against enemies with nasty buffs, as it removes them and deals damage at the same time.
  • Her ultimate is also useful for reducing enemy DEF and allowing for increased damage from the team. Her talent and technique further enhance her abilities in battle.
  • However, outside of situations where enemy buffs are a problem, her usefulness is limited. Nonetheless, she is a valuable addition to any team that needs a unit capable of removing enemy buffs.

SEELE: The Quantum Nuker

• Pros:
  • Unique talent allows her to take an extra turn after defeating an enemy. All her abilities deal single-target damage, making her a great choice for taking down tough enemies.
  • Quantum element is effective against quite a few bosses, especially the last one in Simulated Universe. Interesting character to build if you want to maximize her damage potential.
• Cons:
  • Limited in terms of AOE damage.
• Overall:
  • Seele is an excellent choice for those looking for a Quantum damage dealer who specializes in nuking single targets. Her unique talent allows her to take an extra turn after defeating an enemy.
  • She is also effective against quite a few bosses, especially the last one in Simulated Universe. However, she is limited in terms of AOE damage, so she may not be the best choice for battles with multiple enemies.

TRAILBLAZER: Fire is the Way to Go

• Pros:
  • As a Fire unit, Trailblazer can function as a tank, damage dealer, and Toughness breaker all in one.
  • Generated shields may be flimsy, but they still offer some protection for the team.
  • Reduces Toughness pretty well with Fire damage. Accessible as a 4-star unit.
• Cons:
  • The physical version doesn’t offer much aside from damage output.
• Overall:
  • While the Physical version of Trailblazer can deal decent damage, the Fire version is a much more versatile unit. With the ability to function as a tank, damage dealer, and Toughness breaker, Trailblazer is a valuable addition to any team.
  • Despite the flimsiness of the generated shields, they still provide some protection for the team. Additionally, being a 4-star unit makes Trailblazer more accessible to players. If you want a unit that can do it all, Fire Trailblazer is definitely the way to go.

WELT: Strong Imaginary Element Character

• Pros:
  • Super solid debuffer and damage dealer. Ultimate can Imprison enemies, delay their SPD, and increase the damage they take.
  • Skill can land several slashes and reduce enemy SPD. The only Imaginary element character during the global launch, making him unique.
• Cons:
  • May require some strategy to use effectively. Limited pool of characters to build a team around.
• Overall:
  • Welt is a strong choice for those looking for an Imaginary element character. As a debuffer and damage dealer, he excels at delaying enemies and making them take more damage with his ultimate and skills.
  • While he may require some strategy to use effectively, his uniqueness as the only Imaginary element character during the global launch makes him a valuable addition to any team. However, his limited pool of characters to build a team around may be a disadvantage for some players.

YANQING: High Single Target Damage Dealer

• Pros:
  • Specializes in dealing high damage to a single enemy.
  • Empathic Sword increases his critical rate and damage by a significant amount.
  • Ultimate becomes more powerful when Empathic Sword is active.
  • Less likely to be targeted by enemies due to his talent.
  • Unique playstyle.
• Cons:
  • Loses Empathic Sword if he gets damaged. Vulnerable to AoE and Splash damage.
• Overall:
  • Yanqing is a high single-target damage dealer, thanks to his Empathic Sword which increases his critical rate and damage. His ultimate becomes even more powerful when Empathic Sword is active.
  • Though he is less likely to be targeted by enemies, he can lose Empathic Sword if he gets damaged, making him vulnerable to AoE and Splash damage. However, he has a unique playstyle and can deal significant damage to a single enemy.

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B Tier

ARLAN: A Unique 4-Star Lightning Element Unit

• Pros:
  • Arlan sacrifices his own health to do damage with his skill, freeing up 1 skill point for the team.
  • The Lightning element makes him highly flexible in the game’s stages and bosses.
  • Becomes a beast with buffs that scale with his missing health.
• Cons:
  • Requires good relics to be an effective early game.
  • Requires support to keep him alive.
  • Got reworked before the global launch and now deals less damage with his skill.
• Overall:
  • Arlan is a surprisingly strong 4-star unit from the Lightning element, offering a unique skill that sacrifices his own health to do damage and free up 1 skill point for the team.
  • He becomes a beast with buffs that scale with his missing health, making him highly flexible in the game’s stages and bosses. However, he requires good relics and support to keep him alive. Arlan got reworked before the global launch and now deals less damage with his skill, making him less effective than before.

ASTA: Fire Damage Dealer

• Unique Skill:
  • Ultimate boosts everyone’s Speed
• Pros:
  • Unique Speed boost can be useful in certain team compositions
  • One of her Traces boosts everyone’s Fire DMG in battle
  • Good F2P option for a Fire damage dealer
• Cons:
  • Speed isn’t crucial in this game compared to other turn-based gacha games
  • Only a decent Fire damage dealer, not exceptional
  • Limited usefulness in some team compositions
• Overall:
  • Asta is a good F2P option for players who don’t have access to other Fire characters they find interesting.
  • Her unique Speed boost can be useful in some team compositions, but overall she is just a decent Fire damage dealer. One of her Traces boosts everyone’s Fire DMG, which is a nice bonus. While she may not be exceptional, she can still be a useful addition to a player’s roster.

DAN HENG: Single Target Specialist

• Pros:
  • Specializes in Single Target damage and is really good at it.
  • Can reduce the enemy’s speed by using the skill.
  • Gains increased damage if he gets targeted by an ally’s ability.
• Cons:
  • His damage scales better if the enemy is slowed down, which may not always be possible.
  • Some enemies might resist the slowdown effects, which can be a bit of a bummer.
  • The final stage of Simulated Universe is stacked against him since the final boss’s Toughness cannot be reduced with Wind Damage.
• Overall:
  • Investing in Dan Heng won’t hurt you long-term, especially since he does pretty well in Forgotten Hall. However, his effectiveness may be limited in certain scenarios due to his reliance on slowing down enemies for increased damage.
  • Additionally, the final stage of Simulated Universe can be challenging for him, but given the limited number of Wind units in the game, he is still a valuable addition to your team.

HIMEKO: Inflicting Burn and AoE damage

• Pros:
  • One of Himeko’s Traces allows her to inflict the Burn debuff with any attack, while another Trace boosts her damage against Burning enemies.
  • Her ultimate unleashes a satellite laser that damages all enemies and restores some energy if they are defeated.
• Cons:
  • Before global launch, Himeko was considered underwhelming due to the lower value of AoE damage compared to strong single target attacks.
  • Her ability to apply Burn was previously limited to her Basic ATK.

Overall:

• • Himeko is a unique unit in the game with the ability to inflict Burn debuff with any attack, thanks to one of her Traces. She also has a cool ultimate that unleashes a satellite laser, damaging all enemies and returning some energy if they are defeated.
  • Despite the cons, Himeko’s ability to apply to Burn with any attack and boost her damage against Burning enemies make her a valuable addition to any team.

HOOK: The Simple Single-Target Damage Dealer

• Pros:
  • Excels at single target damage.
  • Enhanced skill version after using ultimate that explodes on both the enemy and its neighbors.
  • Talent boosts damage if the enemy is burning and skill can cause burn as well.
  • Several ways to restore energy, allowing for more frequent use of ultimate.
• Cons:
  • Fire Trailblazer, a free character, can outperform Hook in multiple roles.
• Overall:
  • Hook is a simple but effective character that excels at dealing with single-target damage. Her enhanced skill version after using her ultimate is a nice bonus, and her talent synergizes well with her ability to cause a burn. She also has several ways to restore energy, allowing for more frequent use of her ultimate. However, her effectiveness is somewhat limited by the presence of Fire Trailblazer, a free character who can cover multiple roles and outperform Hook in certain situations.
  • Nonetheless, Hook is still a solid addition to any team focused on dealing single-target damage.

MARCH 7TH: An Ice Support With Counter Attack Abilities

• Pros:
  • March 7th’s skill applies a shield for 1 ally and can deal Ice Toughness damage to enemies.
  • Unique talent allows her to counterattack any enemy after they attack a shielded ally, restoring her energy and dealing additional Ice damage.
  • Her ultimate can freeze enemies and boost the aggro of allies she shields, making them better tanks.
  • Every character has access to three Passive abilities called Traces, and March 7th’s Trace allows her to cleanse 1 debuff when using her skill.
  • In the game’s special mode, Simulated Universe, her Ice damage can be significantly better due to acquired buffs.
• Cons:
  • March 7th’s Ultimate deals low damage.
  • While she is a decent F2P unit, there are stronger options available.
• Overall:
  • March 7th is a solid support unit with her shield and counterattack abilities, making her useful in both offensive and defensive scenarios. Her Trace ability to cleanse debuffs is a great utility in battles. Her ultimate may not deal much damage, but its ability to freeze enemies and boost aggro makes it valuable in certain situations.
  • Although she may not be the strongest unit available, March 7th is a reliable F2P option for players to use in Story and Simulated Universe modes.