Xiangling is a fantastic character you can play as in Genshin Impact, whether you want to scorch entire arenas of enemies or simply cook up some culinary concoctions for your party. The renowned Liyue chef is also a great option for free-to-play adventurers since anyone can unlock Xiangling by beating Floor Three, Chamber Three of the Spiral Abyss.
Xiangling is a polearm user with strong Pyro abilities that can deal significant damage even when she is off-field. For this reason, she is often an essential member of Vaporize, Melt, and Reverse Melt compositions, taking advantage of rapid Elemental Reactions to turn Hilichurls into her next meal's ingredients. This guide will cover the weapons, Artifacts, Talents, and Constellations that Xiangling should build if you want her combat (and her restaurant) to receive a three-star rating.
Updated April 16, 2022, by Kyle Gorges: Genshin Impact has undergone countless changes since Xiangling's introduction alongside the release of the game. Despite this, Xiangling has stood the test of time and is still considered one of the strongest characters in the game when used correctly. This guide has been updated with consideration of all the newest content, meaning now is a better time than ever to pay a visit to Wanmin Restaurant.
Best Weapons For Xiangling
Below are the stats for our top four-star choices for Xiangling's polearm.
| Weapon Name | Base ATK | Secondary Stat | Passive Ability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dragon's Bane | 41 | Elemental Mastery | Xiangling's DMG against opponents affected by Hydro or Pyro is increased by 20%. |
| The Catch | 42 | Energy Recharge | Xiangling's Elemental Burst DMG is increased by 16% and her Elemental Burst Crit Rate is increased by 6%. |
| Kitain Cross Spear | 44 | Elemental Mastery | Xiangling's Elemental Skill DMG is increased by 6%. After her Skill hits an opponent, Xiangling loses 3 Energy immediately, but regenerates 3 Energy every 2s for the next 6s. This effect can occur once every 10s, even when Xiangling is not on the field. |
Dragon's Bane is an exceptional weapon for Xiangling that you can obtain via Genshin Impact's Wish system. When you're using Xiangling in her optimal teams, she will almost always be attacking enemies who are affected by Pyro from her Burst or Hydro from a teammate like Xingqiu. As a result, the passive ability of Dragon's Bane will regularly be active. The polearm's Elemental Mastery secondary stat will also make all of Xiangling's Vaporizes even stronger.
The Catch is another great polearm that is one of the most versatile and powerful four-star weapons in the game. Better yet, The Catch and its Refinements can be obtained for free simply by catching a ton of fish (maybe Xiangling's serving them in her restaurant?). The Catch's Energy Recharge stat allows Xiangling to activate her Burst more frequently, and the weapon's passive increases her Burst's power and consistency. Unless you're using this polearm on Raiden Shogun, it should be a go-to option for Xiangling.
Kitain Cross Spear is a Forgeable, four-star polearm that doesn't get a lot of attention, but it actually complements Xiangling well. The weapon has a high Base ATK along with an EM secondary stat, and its passive generates a significant amount of Energy for Xiangling. So much Energy, in fact, that Xiangling can actually forego many ER Artifact stats in favor of offensive ones. Just make sure you're not using Kitain Cross Spear with the Emblem of Severed Fates Artifact set, otherwise you'll lose out on damage (since Kitain Cross Spear only provides Energy regeneration, not actual Energy Recharge).
While all of these four-star options are competitive with five-star polearms, especially when they have higher Refinement levels, any five-star polearm is naturally going to be strong on Xiangling. Staff of Homa and Engulfing Lightning are the best, so consider equipping them on Xiangling if you have them.
Best Artifacts For Xiangling
There are two artifact sets that offer good options for Xiangling
| Artifact Set Name | Two-Piece Set Bonus | Four-Piece Set Bonus |
|---|---|---|
| Emblem of Severed Fate | Energy Recharge +20% | Xiangling's Elemental Burst DMG is increased by 20% of her Energy Recharge. A maximum of 75% bonus DMG can be obtained in this way. |
| Crimson Witch of Flames | Pyro DMG Bonus +15% | Xiangling's Overloaded and Burning DMG is increased by 40%, while her Vaporize and Melt DMG is increased by 15%. Using Xiangling's Elemental Skill will increase her Pyro DMG Bonus by 7.5% for 10s, stacking up to 3 times. |
Artifact Set Analysis
Both the full Emblem of Severed Fate set and the full Crimson Witch of Flames set perform admirably on Xiangling, and often the difference in damage between the two comes down to specific sub-stats. The main deciding factor between the two, though, is how much Energy Recharge your Xiangling has.
If Xiangling is using a weapon with Energy Recharge and has a lot of ER built into her Artifact stats, then the Emblem of Severed Fate set can offer higher amounts of damage thanks to its Four-Piece Set Bonus. Alternatively, if Xiangling is lacking ER and needs more in order to reliably use her Burst on cooldown, then the Two-Piece Bonus from this set can provide the extra boost in ER that she needs.
If Xiangling already has adequate Energy Recharge, or is being used in a team like "Raiden National" where she doesn't need as much ER on her own, Crimson Witch of Flames pulls ahead in terms of efficacy. Xiangling benefits greatly from both the Pyro DMG Bonus and the boosts to Pyro Reaction DMG, making this Artifact set extremely viable on her as well.
Artifact Stats
No matter which Artifact set you decide on, Xiangling will largely chase after the same stats on both. For your main-stats, Xiangling benefits most from ER Sands, Pyro DMG Bonus Goblets, and Crit Rate/DMG Circlets. As always, choose whichever Circlet type brings you closer to a 1:2 ratio of Crit Rate:Crit DMG.
Xiangling's desired Artifact sub-stats reflect her combat priorities: Energy Recharge is essential to making sure she can use her Burst frequently, since this ability represents the vast majority of her damage. Crit Rate/DMG are always welcome sub-stats as well, along with ATK% and Elemental Mastery, which will make her Reaction damage even more punishing.
Xiangling's ideal Energy Recharge level varies tremendously based on her team and her weapon, but generally anywhere between 160 and 250 ER is advised.
Xiangling's Talents And Constellations
Xiangling's Talents
Leveling up Talents in Genshin Impact can be costly, but thankfully Xiangling's Talent priorities are straightforward. Her Burst should take priority over her other two abilities, since it is such a crucial part of her gameplay no matter how you're using Xiangling.
Her Elemental Skill should be leveled up next, as Guoba is a reliable (albeit less impactful) source of Pyro DMG and Pyro application.
Xiangling's Normal Attacks should be enhanced last because they are rarely used in her usual play-patterns. If you would like to level them up, though, it's probably best to raise them no higher than Level Six.
Xiangling's Constellations
Acquiring Xiangling's Constellations is highly dependent on luck, but at least she's a four-star character, so the odds could be worse. Her best Constellations are C3 and C4, which increase the damage of her Burst and its duration, respectively. C4 especially is incredibly strong, lengthening the duration of her Burst by 40 percent.
Xiangling's C1 and C5 revolve around Guoba, offering him significant improvements. Unfortunately, Guoba's targeting can be inconsistent and positioning him properly remains a challenge.
Finally, Xiangling's C6 increases her own Pyro DMG and further boosts the damage of any other Pyro character on her team. Her C2 relies on attacking enemies with her Normal Attacks, making the Constellation difficult to take advantage of unless Xiangling is your main on-field carry.
