Xiangling is a solid fighter, placing respectably on our Genshin Impact character tier list, which becomes a lot more important when you take into account the fact that Xiangling is one of only two characters (alongside Barbara) who you can claim completely for free after completing the Prologue. Xiangling is powerful enough that you might well consider her as your party’s main DPS character, though she is most ideally placed as a sub DPS.
How to build Xiangling as your sub DPS in Genshin Impact
Best weapon: The Catch
Alternative: Dragon’s Bane If you want to go in a slightly different direction, a strong second choice is the Dragon’s Bane, which increases damage against enemies affected by Pyro or Hydro by a minimim of 20%.
Best artifacts: Crimson Witch of Flames
Set bonuses:
2 piece bonus: Pyro DMG Bonus +15% 4 piece bonus: Increases Overloaded and Burning DMG by 40%; increases Vaporize and Melt DMG by 15%; using Elemental Skill increases the 2 piece set bonus by 50% for 10 seconds
Alternative: Crimson Witch of Flames mixed with Gladiator’s Finale There are two main good choices when it comes to Xiangling’s artifacts: you can either choose to go all-in on the Crimson Witch of Flames set, or take a mix-and-match approach and work in some pieces from the Gladiator’s Finale set as well. The benefit of focusing exclusively on the Crimson Witch of Flames is that this set is designed specifically to boost Pyro characters, and this particular set boasts some surprisingly high stacking damage increases. Equipping two pieces will grant Xiangling a 15% elemental attack bonus, while having four pieces equipped gives her access to a suite of frankly terrifying benefits: Overloaded and Burning DMG both get an extra 40%; Vaporize and Melt DMG increase by 15%; and utilising her Elemental Skill stacks an additional 50% DMG (up to three times) on top of the 15% she gains from the two piece set, for a 10-second duration. Alternatively, mixing in a few pieces from the Gladiator’s Finale set locks you out of those amazing four-piece bonuses but gives a useful increase to weapon as well as elemental attacks, allowing you to play to Xiangling’s strengths and preserve her in-built balance between the two attack styles. (You could even go exclusively down the Gladiator’s Finale route for a nice extra boost to Xiangling’s Polearm attacks, though that requires sacrificing all the Pyro benefits of Crimson Witch of Flames and so probably isn’t worth it on balance.) To further tweak this delicate arrangement, aim for the following substats on Xiangling’s artifacts:
Circlet of Logos: ATK or CRITs Sands of Eon: Energy Recharge or ATK Goblet of Eonothem: Pyro DMG Bonus Substats: ATK, CRITs, or Elemental Mastery
Talent priority: Pyronado (Elemental Burst)
Alternative: Guoba Attack (Elemental Skill) Xiangling’s best Talents are undeniably her Elementals, but whether you prefer the Skill or the Burst will largely depend on how well you vibe with her companion character, Guoba. Xiangling’s Elemental Skill Guoba Attack summons her sweet red panda buddy, who deals Xiangling’s best base Pyro AoE damage while he’s out. But some players find the inability to direct Guoba’s attacks simply too frustrating, and prefer to prioritise her Pyronado Elemental Burst, if only because it leaves the opportunity to unleash flaming chaos against her enemies firmly in Xiangling’s own hands. If you’ve been following this build and its recommendations closely, Xiangling’s weapon feeds off of her Elemental Burst while her artifacts do the same with her Elemental Skill, so it’s still really up to you. Personally, I find Genshin Impact’s companion characters are often too much of a wild card for my liking, so I’ve gone for Pyronado ahead of Guoba, but it really is a matter of personal preference (and for best results, you should absolutely be looking at developing both). Below is a full list of Xiangling’s Talents:
Normal Attack: Dough-Fu Normal Attack - Performs up to five consecutive spear strikes with her polearm. Charged Attack - Consumes a certain amount of Stamina to lunge forward, dealing damage to opponents along the way. Plunging Attack - Plunges from mid-air to strike the ground below, damaging opponents along the path and dealing AoE DMG upon impact. Elemental Skill: Guoba Attack - Summons Guoba the Panda. After 2 seconds, Guoba starts breathing fire at an opponent, dealing AoE Pyro DMG 4 times every 1.5 seconds. Elemental Burst: Pyronado - Displaying her mastery over both fire and polearms, Xiangling sends a Pyronado whirling around her. The Pyronado will move with her for so long as the ability persists, dealing Pyro DMG to all opponents in her path. 1st Ascension Passive: Crossfire - Increases Guoba’s flame range by 20%. 4th Ascension Passive: Beware, It’s Super Hot! - When Guoba Attack’s effects end, Guoba leaves a chili pepper on the spot where it disappeared. Picking up the chili pepper increases Xiangling’s attack by 10% for 10s. Utility Passive: Chef de Cuisine - When Perfect Cooking is achieved on an attack-boosting dish, Xiangling has a 12% chance to receive double the product.
Party composition
Main DPS: Xingqiu Sub DPS: Xiangling Healer: Bennett Support: Sucrose
5-star alternative: Tartaglia replacing Xingqiu as main DPS Pairing Xiangling up with a Hydro DPS allows them to repeatedly apply the Vaporize elemental reaction, a powerful effect that gives a significant boost to outgoing damage against affected enemies. Xingqiu is the best 4-star character for this role, though like Xiangling, he’s really better suited to sub-DPS duties. The two of them can muddle along quite nicely as effectively joint-DPS party members, but if you have any 5-star Hydro DPS candidates at your disposal — like the formidable Tartaglia — this is definitely the time to deploy them. Bennett is always a top-class healer, but in a party with Xiangling he’ll be even more help, passively triggering the Fervent Flames elemental resonance that increases all party members’ attack by 25%. That’s on top of his own innate healing prowess, so don’t miss the chance to add this shockingly easy-to-obtain candidate for the game’s best character to Xiangling’s team if at all possible. Rounding out the party is Sucrose, another extremely high-tier 4-star character. Sucrose’s strength lies in crowd control, and when her Anemo powers combine with Hydro and/or Pyro, the Swirl effect is triggered and the team’s potential for dealing elemental damage to multiple enemies at once goes off-the-charts.
How to level up Xiangling in Genshin Impact
Ascension Materials
To fully ascend Xiangling you’ll need the following materials: None of these materials are vanishingly rare, but there is only one source for Everflame Seeds in the game. You pick up this resource from Pyro Regisvines (Normal Bosses) above Level 30, so expect to perhaps have to make a more conscious effort to keep supplies coming in compared to the other resources. Jeuyun Chilis, which you’ll need in spicy quantities, can fortunately be easily obtained by foraging for them in Xiangling’s home nation of Liyue, or alternatively just bought from the Wanmin Restaurant where she works when you meet her.
Talents
To level up any one of Xiangling’s talents, you’ll need to gather together the following materials. Note that if you plan to triple crown Xiangling by fully levelling up all of her talents, you’ll have to do this a total of three times. Slimes are easily obtained from defeated Slime enemies at various increasing levels of difficulty; while Dvalin’s claws, as the name suggests, come from completing the Stormterror Challenge at Level 70+. You can pick up the books you need from the Taishan Mansion domain (Tuesday/Friday/Sunday only); while Crowns of Insight are possible rewards for participating in most time-limited events, as well as obtainable by making offerings to Frostbearing Trees or Sacred Sakuras.
Constellations
Xiangling’s Constellations overwhelmingly favour her Elemental attacks, and since those are her greatest strengths, it’s well worth getting her all the way up to Level 6. The good news is that since she’s a 4-star character who can be obtained for free with a little effort and quite often enjoys incresed drop rates on Character Event Wish banners, you’ll likely have plenty of opportunities to do so. Note that if you complete the Spiral Abyss - People’s Choice event, you can only obtain the free copy of Xiangling once, no matter how many times you beat Floor 3, Chamber 3. This is basically just to stop you from using the event to exploit your way through all of her Constellations. (Sorry if I’ve just shattered your dreams of cheesing your way to a high-powered Xiangling; it was a good idea.) Below is a full list of Xiangling’s Constellations:
Crispy Outside, Tender Inside (Lvl 1): Opponents hit by Guoba’s attacks have their Pyro Resistance reduced by 15% for 6s. Oil Meet Fire (Lvl 2): The last attack in a Normal Attack sequence applies the Implode status onto the opponent for 2s. An explosion will occur once this duration ends, dealing 75% of Xiangling’s attack as AoE Pyro DMG. Deepfry (Lvl 3): Increases the level of Pyronado by 3. Maximum upgrade level is 15. Slowbake (Lvl 4): Pyronado’s duration is increased by 40%. Guoba Mad (Lvl 5): Increases the level of Guoba Attack by 3. Maximum upgrade level is 15. Condensed Pyronado (Lvl 6): For the duration of Pyronado, all party members receive a 15% Pyro DMG Bonus.
How to get Xiangling in Genshin Impact
Xiangling can be claimed for free by players who participate in the Spiral Abyss Event — People’s Choice and complete Floor 3, Chamber 3 of the challenge. At the time of writing this event is described as indefinitely available, and the only requirement to take part is that you’ve reached Adventure Rank 20. However, it’s quite challenging to complete, and since Xiangling is a 4-star rarity, you might well end up pulling her from the gacha before you’re able to make it that far. You have a chance of pulling Xiangling from the gacha whenever you Wish, whether it’s on the Wanderlust Invocation (standard wish); Beginners’ Wish (expires after 20 wishes); or all Character Event Wishes and Weapon Event Wishes. She’ll also sometimes feature with a boosted drop rate on the event banners of 5-star characters — we’ll be sure to let you know the next time this happens! Xiangling can also frequently be obtained from the Starglitter Exchange in Paimon’s Bargains, where she’s featured and available to purchase outright roughly one month out of every six. Now you know everything about putting together the best Xiangling build in Genshin Impact! Once you’re able to claim Xiangling for free you might well want have her replace starting party member Amber as your go-to Pyro character — why not take a look at our guide to the best Amber build to get a feel for how the two compare? Or, for a more recent addition to the roster who also happens to be a 4-star Pyro polearm and gives Xiangling a run for her money in the sub-DPS department, check out our best Thoma build advice.
