Five-star characters Shenhe and Xiao are now available in Genshin Impact as part of Version 2.4 Update – Fleeting Colors in Flight. Shenhe and Xiao are both related to the Liyue’s adepti, with Xiao being one while Shenhe being the disciple of Cloud Retainer, another adepti who lives in Mt. Aocang.
Shenhe is a Cryo, polearm user who hails from a family of exorcists but was taken as a disciple by Cloud Retainer due to a curse. Xiao, on the other hand, is known as the Conqueror of Demons — a yaksha who purge the corrupted monsters that roam Liyue. He has an Anemo-vision and also uses the polearm to deal damage to his enemies.
If you’re one of the many players confused to whom they should pull for on this latest update, below are few details about Shenhe and Xiao’s capabilities and talents. With this information, we hope that we can help you decide on whether you should pick Shenhe or Xiao for your team.
Shenhe – Lonesome Transcendence
Shenhe is a great Sub-DPS, support character with Cryo vision and wields the polearm to defeat her enemies. She can provide large amounts of Cryo and Physical resistance shred. Shenhe is designed for mono Cryo teams with characters like Eula and Ganyu. Plus, she has an Elemental Burst which can cover a wide area.
Why Choose Shenhe?
As stated above, Shenhe will be a great addition to any party who doesn’t have a consistent sub-DPS Cryo character. She also works best with other Cryo DPS characters such as Eula, Ganyu, and Ayaka. You can then add other sub-DPS characters in your party like Mona, Kazuha, or Venti. You can check this Shenhe best build for reference.
Shenhe Skills
Dawnstar Piercer Normal Attack
- Normal Attack – Performs up to five consecutive spear strikes.
- 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.
Spring Spirit Summoning – Elemental Skill
- The frosted dew, silvery and dense, shall exorcise all demons.
- Grants all nearby party members the Icy Quill effect and deals Cryo DMG in different ways based on whether it is pressed or held.
- Press – Rushes forward together with a Talisman Spirit, dealing Cryo DMG to opponents along the path.
- Hold – Commands the Talisman Spirit to deal AoE Cryo DMG.
- Icy Quill – When Normal, Charged, and Plunging Attacks, Elemental Skills, and Elemental Bursts deal Cryo DMG to opponents, the DMG dealt is increased based on Shenhe’s current ATK.
- The Icy Quill’s effects will be cleared once its duration ends or after being triggered a certain number of times. When held rather than pressed, the Icy Quill’s effect lasts longer and can be triggered more times.
- When one Cryo DMG instance strikes multiple opponents, the effect is triggered multiple times based on the number of opponents hit. The number of times the effect is triggered is calculated independently for each party member with the Icy Quill.
Divine Maiden’s Deliverance – Elemental Burst
- Unleashes the power of the Talisman Spirit, allowing it to roam free in this plane, dealing AoE Cryo DMG.
- The Talisman Spirit then creates a field that decreases the Cryo RES and Physical RES of opponents within it. It also deals periodic Cryo DMG to opponents within the field.
Deific Embrace – 1st Ascension Passive
- An active character within the field created by Divine Maiden’s Deliverance gains 15% Cryo DMG Bonus.
Spirit Communion Seal – 4th Ascension Passive
- After Shenhe uses Spring Spirit Summoning, she will grant all nearby party members the following effects:
- Press: Elemental Skill and Elemental Burst DMG increased by 15% for 10s.
- Hold: Normal, Charged, and Plunging Attack DMG increased by 15% for 15s.
Precise Comings and Goings – Utility Passive
- Gains 25% more rewards when dispatched on a Liyue Expedition for 20 hours.
Xiao – Vigilant Yaksha
Xiao is a DPS character you would definitely want in your team. His built for high mobility, allowing him to easily close gaps between enemies and extend combo hits. This makes his close-range attacks fast and easy to use. Plus, he does deal massive damage without constellations unlocked.
Why Choose Xiao?
You should definitely choose Xiao if you still don’t have a decent DPS dealer in your team. Xiao is one of the best damage-dealers in the game. You don’t even need to gain one of his constellations to deal immense damage to his enemies. In fact, he can fully carry a team as its main DPS. He also works well against both single-targets or multiple-targets. You can check this Xiao best build for reference.
Xiao Skills
Whirlwind Thrust – Normal/Charged Attack
- Normal Attack: Performs up to 6 consecutive spear strikes.
- Charged Attack: Consumes a certain amount of Stamina to perform an upward thrust.
- Plunging Attack: Plunges from mid-air to strike the ground from below, damaging opponents along the path and dealing AoE DMG upon impact.
- Xiao does not take DMG from performing Plunging Attacks.
Lemniscatic Wind Cycling – Elemental Skill
- Xiao lunges forward, dealing Anemo DMG to opponents in his path.
- Skill can be used in mid-air.
- Starts with 2 charges.
- Generates 3 elemental particles when it hits at least 1 target.
Bane of All Evil – Elemental Burst
- Xiao dons the Yaksha Mask that set gods and demons trembling millennia ago.
- Yaksha’s Mask:
- Greatly increases Xiao’s jumping ability.
- Increases his attack AoE and attack damage.
- Converts attack damage into Anemo damage, which cannot be overridden by any other elemental infusion.
- In this state, Xiao will continuously lose HP. The effects of this skill end when Xiao leaves the field.
Evil Conqueror: Tamer of Demons – 1st Ascension Passive
- While under the effects of Bane of All Evil, all DMG dealt by Xiao increases by 5%. DMG increases by a further 5% for every 3s the ability persists. The maximum DMG Bonus is 25%.
Dissolution Eon: Heaven Fall – 4th Ascension Passive
- Using Lemniscatic Wind Cycling increases the DMG of subsequent uses of Lemniscatic Wind Cycling by 15%. This effect lasts for 7s, and has a maximum of 3 stacks. Gaining a new stack refreshes the effect’s duration.
Transcension: Gravity Defier – Utility Passive
- Decreases climbing Stamina consumption for your own party members by 20%.
- Not stackable with Passive Talents that provide the exact same effects.
So are you going to pull for Shenhe or Xiao? Let us know in the comments below.
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