Archer is the second free 5-star DPS in Honkai Star Rail, and he packs a punch. Archer is a 5-star Quantum character of the Hunt Path, and he specializes in single-target damage output. His unique skill lets him deal multiple attacks during his turn. Building and playing Archer is a bit tricky due to his Skill Point negative nature. So, check out the best Archer builds in Honkai Star Rail in this guide and learn how to get past all of Archer’s shortcomings to dish out massive damage.
Archer Character Overview: Basic Info, Rating, and Stats
| Type | Details |
|---|---|
| Rarity | 5-Star |
| Path |  The Hunt |
| Element |  Quantum |
| ATK | 620 |
| DEF | 485 |
| HP | 1164 |
| Speed | 105 |
| Energy | 220 |
| General Rating |  |
| Pure Fiction Rating |  |
| Memory of Chaos Rating | |
| Apocalyptic Shadow Rating | |
Is Archer Worth Building? Pros and Cons
Archer is obtainable for free in Honkai Star Rail, so you must wonder if he is worth investing your hard-earned materials. That’s a question we must answer before discussing Archer’s builds in this guide.
Here are the pros and cons of Archer in Honkai Star Rail that you must know before you decide whether you want to build him or not.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Strong single-target Quantum damage | Very skill point negative |
| Can take multiple turns | Can be hard to play for new players |
| Follow-up attacks | Bad against multiple enemies |
| – | Not very F2P friendly |
Although Archer has many negative points, I would still recommend building him if you build the ideal team composition. This new HSR character can deal a surprising amount of single-target damage when built correctly. But as he is not free-to-play friendly, you do need Sparkle or someone equivalent to get the best out of him.
Should I Get Archer’s Signature Light Cone?
Archer’s signature weapon is strong, and it is also obtainable for free. The Light Cone provides 16% Crit Rate and increases ATK for each use of the wearer’s skill. For Hunt characters that take action frequently, this Light Cone can be very good. However, one of its passives only works when the Skill Point limit is 6 or higher. So, this passive only works with either Archer or Sparkle on the team.
Now, the signature Light Cone is also powerful for Archer as he ideally spends 10 Skill Points during each one of his turns. This way, Archer can activate all the effects of the Light Cone from the very first turn, making it easily his best option.
Currently, Archer’s Light Cone can be obtained for free by spending 200 Star Rail Special Passes on any limited-time banner during version 3.4. The event is only applicable for Honkai Star Rail 3.4, so make sure to spend all your Stellar Jades and passes during this version if you want the 5-star Hunt Light Cone for free. If you are running low on Stellar Jades, use Honkai Star Rail codes to refill your stocks.
Honkai Star Rail Archer: Best Builds
| Type | Information |
|---|---|
| Light Cone |  The Hell Where Ideals Burn |
| Relic |  Genius of Brilliant Stars |
| Planar Ornament |  Rutilant Arena |
| Main Stats | Body: Crit Rate Boots: ATK% Sphere: ATK% Rope: ATK% |
| Sub Stats | ATK% > Crit Rate > Crit Damage > Speed |
This is the best build for Archer in Honkai Star Rail. His best Light Cone is The Hell Where Ideals Burn, his best Relic is Genius of Brilliant Stars, and his best Planar Ornament is Rutilant Arena.
As for stats, Archer should prioritize a Crit body, and ATK% for boots, sphere, and rope. Archer’s ATK stat has the highest priority as his entire kit scales on it. Now, if you’re looking for more alternatives for Archer’s build, then refer to the following sections.
HSR Archer Light Cones: Best and Alternatives
| Name | Rarity | Value |
|---|---|---|
The Hell Where Ideals Burn | 5-Star | Best |
 Baptism of Pure Thought | 5-star | Great |
 Cruising in the Stellar Sea | 5-star | Great and F2P |
 See You At The End | 4-star | Good |
 Only Silence Remains | 4-star | Good |
 Swordplay | 4-star | Good |
The Hell Where Ideals Burn is the best Hunt Light Cone for Archer. It increases his ATK by 80% and Crit Rate by 16%. The Light Cone is obtainable for free during HSR 3.4 version, making it the best choice if you want to properly build Archer in Honkai Star Rail. However, there are also alternatives that are equally good in terms of damage.
The Baptism of Pure Thought is the best 5-star alternative Light Cone for Archer. If you don’t have it, then simply go with the Herta Store Light Cone — Cruising in the Stellar Sea. For 4-star options, See You At The End and Only Silence Remains are good options as well. Other than that, Swordplay is always a good 4-star Light Cone for most Hunt characters, and Archer is not an exception.
HSR Archer Relics: Best and Alternatives
| Name | Value |
|---|---|
Genius of Brilliant Stars | Best |
 Wavestrider Captain | Great |
 Scholar Lost in Erudition | Good |
The Genius of Brilliant Stars is easily the best Relic for Archer. It increases his Quantum Damage and lets him ignore 20% DEF of enemies with Quantum Weaknesses. As you will mainly want Archer against enemies weak to Quantum, this Relic is simply perfect for him.
Next, the Wavestrider Captain and the Scholar Lost in Erudition are also good choices for Archer. Both sets provide solid stats for any DPS unit and are not far behind compared to his best option.
HSR Archer Planar Ornaments: Best and Alternatives
| Name | Value |
|---|---|
Rutilant Arena | Best |
 Inert Salsotto | Great |
The good old Rutilant Arena is the best Planar Ornament for Archer. It increases Crit Rate and Skill Damage for Archer, making it a perfect choice.
Next on the line is Inert Salsotto, which also increases the character’s Crit Rate. However, instead of increasing Skill damage, it increases the Ultimate and Follow-up Attack damage, which will make Archer lose out on damage in the long run.
Recommended Stats for Archer
| Stat | Recommended Value | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| ATK | 3000+ | High |
| Crit Rate | 100% | High |
| Crit Damage | 150% or above | High |
| Speed | Base Speed | – |
Archer’s recommended stats are ATK, Crit Rate, and Crit Damage. You should ideally build over 3000 ATK on Archer to scale his kit properly. Now, it is also important to reach 100% Crit Rate with buff, as the Crit Damage is the main bread and butter for Archer. High Crit Damage is good on Archer, but hitting 150% or more should be enough for most enemies.
Finally, Archer doesn’t have any speed requirement, as his base speed is good enough for most challenges. However, if you don’t have Sparkle and are instead using either Bronya or Sunday, then go with the -1 speed setup.
Honkai Star Rail Archer: Best Teams
Archer is a character who truly shines with the best team. Without proper allies, you won’t see the same damage output from Archer, even with his best builds. So, here are the best team comps for Archer in Honkai Star Rail.
Archer’s Mono Quantum
The best team for Archer will always feature Sparkle as she grants additional Skill Points in the game.
Other than that, the other team members should be Skill Point positive while aiding Archer’s total damage output. The best character for that is Tribbie, who excels at both generating Skill Points as well as increasing team damage output. For Sustains, Gallagher is the clear choice because of his Skill Point positive nature and power sustaining capabilities.
Archer’s Generalist Team
| Type | DPS | Support | Support | Sustain | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General |  Archer |  Sunday |  Cipher |  Luocha | Good |
If you don’t have the best allies mentioned above, then you can go for these alternatives. Both Sunday and Bronya are good replacements for Sparkle. For the other support, Cipher, Pela, and Silver Wolf can work well. For sustain, Luocha or Hyacine are the best alternatives for Gallagher.
Archer’s F2P Friendly Team (Free to Play)
Archer doesn’t have a particularly strong F2P team. His best F2P team will feature Remembrance Trailblazer, Pela, and Gallagher. You can also use Tingyun over Pela and Lynx over Gallagher if you don’t have them built.
Honkai Star Rail Archer Kit: Traces and Eidolons
HSR Archer’s Trace and Eidolon Priority
| Trace | Explanation | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Attack | Deals low Quantum damage to one enemy. You ideally don’t need to use basic attacks with Archer | Very Low / Ignore |
| Skill | Can non-stop attack single targets with a damage multiplier, consuming two skill points for each attack. Each of his consecutive attacks in one turn grants additional damage, up to 5 times. This is the main damage source for Archer | Highest |
| Ultimate | Deals very high Quantum damage to one enemy and gains 2 charges | High |
| Talent | Archer consumes charges to Follow-up Attack enemies targeted by allies, which also recovers Skill Points | High |
| A2 | Increases maximum skill point limit | High |
| A4 | Gives him 1 charge after entering battle | Medium |
| A6 | Increases Archer’s Crit Damage for 1 turn if the team has 4 or more Skill points | High |
| E1 | Makes it easier to recover Skill points | Great |
| E2 | Induces Quantum weakness on enemies and reduces their Quantum resistance | Best |
| E4 | Increases Ultimate damage | Decent |
| E6 | Gains Skill Points at the start of turn, increases maximum stacks for Skill Point consumption to damage increase, and makes his Skill ignore 20% enemy DEF | Good |
HSR Archer’s Traces and Eidolons
| Trace | Details |
|---|---|
| Basic Attack (Kanshou and Bakuya) | Deals Quantum DMG equal to 100% of Archer’s ATK to one designated enemy. |
| Skill (Caladbolg II: Fake Spiral Sword) | Enters the “Circuit Connection” state. Deals Quantum DMG equal to 360% of Archer’s ATK to one designated enemy. When using his Skill in the “Circuit Connection” state, the current turn does not end, and the DMG dealt by Archer’s Skill increases by 100%. This effect can be stacked up to 2 times, lasting until he exits the “Circuit Connection” state. After actively using his Skill 5 time(s) or when there are insufficient Skill Points, using his Skill again causes him to exit the “Circuit Connection” state. Exits the “Circuit Connection” state after all enemy targets have been defeated in each wave. |
| Ultimate (Unlimited Blade Works) | Deals Quantum DMG equal to 1000% of Archer’s ATK to one designated enemy and gains 2 Charge(s), up to a maximum of 4 Charge(s). |
| Talent (Mind’s Eye (True)) | When Archer’s teammate attacks an enemy target, Archer consumes 1 Charge and immediately launches Follow-up ATK on the primary target, dealing Quantum DMG equal to 200% of Archer’s ATK and recovering 1 Skill Point. If the target is defeated before this Follow-up ATK is launched, the Follow-up ATK will be directed at one random enemy instead. |
| Technique (Clairvoyance) | Immediately attacks the enemy. After entering combat, deals Quantum DMG equal to 200% of Archer’s ATK to all enemies and gains 1 Charge(s). |
| A2 (Projection Magecraft) | When Archer is on the field, the maximum Skill Point limit increases by 2. |
| A4 (Hero of Justice) | When Archer enters battle, he gains 1 Charge. |
| A6 (Guardian) | After allies gain a Skill Point, if there are 4 Skill Points or more, it increases Archer’s CRIT DMG by 120% for 1 turn(s). |
| Bonus Stats | 22.4% Quantum Damage 18% ATK 6.7% Crit Rate |
| E1 (The Unreached Dream) | After using Skill 3 time(s) within one turn, recovers 2 Skill Point(s) for allies. |
| E2 (The Unfulfilled Happiness) | When using Ultimate, reduces the enemy target’s Quantum RES by 20%, and induces Quantum Weakness for it, lasting for 2 turn(s). |
| E3 (The Untamed Will) | Skill Level + 2, Basic Attack Level + 1 |
| E4 (The Unsung Life) | Increases Ultimate DMG dealt by 150%. |
| E5 (The Nameless Watch) | Ultimate Level + 2, Talent Level + 2 |
| E6 (The Endless Pilgrimage) | When the turn begins, it recovers 1 Skill Point for allies. The number of maximum stacks for the DMG boost effect provided by his Skill increases by 1. His Skill DMG ignores 20% of DEF. |
Honkai Star Rail Archer’s Ascension and Trace Materials
Archer’s Ascension Materials
| Ascension Material | Total |
|---|---|
| Extinguished Core | 15 |
| Glimmering Core | 15 |
| Darkveil Moonlight | 65 |
| Squirming Core | 15 |
| Credit | 308,000 |
Archer’s Trace Materials
| Trace Materials | Total |
|---|---|
| Meteoric Bullet | 18 |
| Extinguished Core | 41 |
| Destined Expiration | 69 |
| Glimmering Core | 56 |
| Countertemporal Shot | 139 |
| Squirming Core | 58 |
| Guardian’s Lament | 12 |
| Tracks of Destiny | 8 |
| Credit | 3,000,000 |
So, this is Archer’s best build and team composition in Honkai Star Rail. He is a surprisingly good free 5-star DPS. Archer is particularly strong in version 3.4 MoC and Apocalyptic Shadow. With Sparkle being on the banner and his Light Cone available for free in this version, this might be your best chance to build Archer perfectly with a lot fewer resources. Interested in building Archer? Let us know in the comments.
