In Honkai: 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 in Honkai: Star Rail is more versatile and depends on exploiting opponents' weakness rather than focusing on elemental reactions, as seen in Genshin 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.
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In terms of gameplay, the Wind Element in Honkai: Star Rail primarily 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.
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.
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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.
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.
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Apart from being a formidable DPS character, Dan Heng also has the advantage of reducing enemy speed upon 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.
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 kit functions similarly to Hu Tao from Genshin 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.
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 in content 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 an exceptional support character and 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 accessing her 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.
Honkai: Star Rail is now available on Android, iOS, and PC. A PlayStation version is in development.
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