Honkai Star Rail Blade Best Build: Relics, Light Cones & Teams Comps

Blade is a limited 5* star Destruction character with the Wind damage type in Honkai Star Rail. He is a DPS who scales mainly on HP and secondarily on Attack. Blade’s kit is unique as he deals increasing damage based on the amount of health he loses. Here is how you can best build Blade in Honkai Star Rail and quash enemy health bars.

Who is Blade in Honkai Star Rail?

In Honkai Star Rail, Blade is a member of the Stellaron Hunters with a disturbing past. He was part of the High-Cloud Quintet in Xianzhou with Dan Heng Inbibitor Lunae, Jing Yuan, Jing Liu, and Baiheng. Without spoiling too much, Blade is an Immortal who gets revived every time he dies. However, the act of dying is so painful that Blade’s memories chip away with each revival.

Blade’s Upcoming Banners and Release Date

Blade last re-ran in the first phase of the Honkai Star Rail 1.6 update, which was released on December 27, 2023. His next banner re-run is still unknown and we will update it here when we find any news about it. He was released as a playable character on July 19, 2023.

Blade’s Kit And Cycle Rotation (At Max Level)

Blade’s kit is very different from most other characters in the game. To create the best Blade build, we need to first understand his kit. Let’s have a look at his kit and then see how to ideally play him.

• Shard Sword (Basic Attack): It deals a flat Wind Damage equal to 130% of Blade’s attack to a single enemy.

• Forest of Swords (Enhanced Basic Attack): It deals sum of 52% of his Attack and 130% of his Max HP as Wind Damage to a single enemy after consuming 10% of Blade’s Max HP. Additionally, Blade’s Enhanced Basic Attack also deals a sum of 20.8% of his Attack and 52% of his Max HP as Wind Damage to the adjacent enemies of the main target. When Blade’s HP is insufficient, his HP is reduced to 1 instead when Forest of Swords is used. This attack doesn’t generate skill points.

• Hellscape (Skill): Blade consumes 30% of his max HP to enter the Hellscape state. In this state, he cannot use his skill, and his Basic Attack is enhanced to Forest of Swords from Shards of Sword, dealing 54% increased damage for 3 turns. When Blade’s HP is insufficient, his HP is reduced to 1 instead when the skill is used. This skill doesn’t generate energy and it doesn’t end the current turn.

• Death Sentence (Ultimate): It deals a sum of 48% of his Attack, 120% of his Max HP, and 120% of the tally of Blade’s HP loss in the current battle (maxed at 90% of his Max HP) as Wind Damage to a single enemy after setting Blade’s HP to 50%. Additionally, Blade’s Ultimate deals 19.2% of his Attack, 48% of his Max HP, and 48% of the tally of Blade’s HP loss in the battle as Wind Damage to the adjacent enemies of the main target. The tally of the Blade’s HP loss is reset and it starts reaccumulating after using his Ultimate.

• Shuhu’s Gift (Talent): When Blade’s HP gets reduced, he gains 1 stack of Charge (max 5 stacks), and max of 1 charge of stack can be gained every time he gets attacked. When the charge stack maxes out, Blade does an AoE Follow-up attack immediately, dealing the sum of 55% of his attack and 137.5% of his Max HP as Wind Damage. Also, Blade restores HP by 25% of his Max HP. All Charges reset after the Follow-up attack.

• Karma Wind (Technique): Consumes 20% of Blade’s Max HP and deals 40% of his Max HP as Wind Damage to all enemies after entering combat. When Blade’s HP is insufficient, his HP is reduced to 1 instead when his Technique is used. The technique immediately attacks enemies to enter combat.

Blade has a unique kit, which scales his damage based on his Max HP and HP lost during the combat. His entire kit focuses on consuming his Max HP to do increasing Damage, which is why you will mostly find Blade at around 50% of his HP.

The ideal way to play Blade is to maximize on his Enhanced Basic attack, which he uses after entering Hellscape, after using his Skill. Blade’s ideal cycle rotation should be like the following:

Skill > Basic Attack > Basic Attack > Basic Attack > Ultimate > Skill Basic > Attack > Basic Attack > Basic Attack > Ultimate

This way, Blade’s Ultimate will fully capitalize on the increased damage from his HP loss tally (maxed at 90% of his max HP).

Relics, Planar Ornaments, and Sub Stats for Best Blade Build

Proper Relics and Planar Ornaments can make or break a character. Let’s look at the best Relic and Planar Ornaments for Blade and the best main and sub stats for them!

Best Relics for Blade

• 4-piece Longevous Disciple (Best For Blade)
• 2-piece Longevous Disciple and 2-piece Eagle of Twilight Line (Buffs both HP% and Wind Damage)

The 4-piece Longevous Disciple is the best Relic set for Blade as it buffs the wearer’s Max HP by 12% and increases the Crit Rate by 8% (max 2 stacks) whenever the wearer loses HP, perfectly banking on Blade’s kit.

You can also use the 2-piece Eagle of Twilight Line and 2-piece Longevous Disciple to build Blade, as it gives a straight 10% Wind Damage boost with the 12% Max HP boost.

Best Planar Ornaments

• 2-Piece Inert Salsotto (Best For Blade)
• 2-Piece Rutilant Arena (Best Alternative)

Both the 2-Piece Rutilant Arena and Inert Salsotto are perfect for Blade, with very few differences. The Inert Salsotto is slightly better, as it buffs both the Ultimate and Follow-up attacks, while the Rutilant Arena buffs Basic Attacks and Skill Damage (Blade’s Skill doesn’t do damage).

Both the sets buff the Crit Rate, and you can use either without seeing much difference.

Best Main and Sub Stats

When it comes to Blade’s main and sub-stats, stack as much Crit Rate and Crit Damage as possible to get the maximum damage output from him. After that, adding HP % will be better than Attack % as Blade scales better on HP. You can also add Speed to reach the Speed Breakpoints to execute more attacks every cycle.

Best Light Cones for Blade

• The Unreachable Side (Signature Light Cone): Flat increases 15% Crit Rate by 18% and Max HP by 18%. When the wearer loses HP, their Damage increase by an additional 24%. This effect is removed each time the wearer uses an attack.
• A Secret Vow (Best Alternative): Wearer deals increased Damage by 20% (40% at S5) and an additional 20% (40% at S5) when the target enemy has an equal or higher current HP percentage than the wearer.
• On the Fall of an Aeon (Best F2P Alternative at S5): The attack of the wearer increases by 16% (8% at S1) whenever he attacks enemies (max 4 stacks). After a character inflicts Weakness Break on an enemy, it additionally increases the wearer’s damage by 24% (12% at S1) for 2 turns.

Blade Ascension and Trace Materials

All Ascension Materials for Blade:

Material	Quantity
Credit	308k
Immortal Scionette	15
Immortal Aeroblossom	15
Ascendant Debris	65
Immortal Lumintwig	15

All Trace Materials for Blade:

Material	Quantity
Credit	3 Million
Shattered Blade	18
Immortal Scionette	41
Lifeless Blade	69
Immortal Aeroblossom	56
Worldbreaker Blade	139
Immortal Lumintwig	58
Regret of Infinite Ochema	12
Tracks of Destiny	8

Blade Eidolons in Honkai Star Rail

• Blade Cuts the Deepest in Hell (E1): Blade’s Ultimate deals increased damage equal to 150% of the tally of Blade’s HP loss (maxed at 90% of his Max HP) in the current battle, to a single enemy. The tally of the Blade’s HP loss is reset and starts reaccumulating after using his Ultimate.

• Ten Thousand Sorrows From One Broken Dream (E2): Crit Rate increases by 15% in Hellscape state.

• Hardened Blade Bleeds Coldest Shade (E3): Ultimate Level + 2, up to Level 15 max, Talent Level + 2, up to Level 15 max.

• Rejected by Death, Infected With Life (E4): Blade’s Max HP increases by 2o% (max 2 stacks) when his current HP drops to 50% or lower of his Max HP.

• Death By Ten Lords’ Gaze (E5): Skill Level + 2, up to Level 15 max, Basic Attack Level + 2, up to Level 10 max.

• Reborn Into an Empty Husk (E6): Max Charged stack is reduced to 4 from 5. His follow-up attack triggered by his Talent causes increased damage by 50% of his Max HP.

Blade is a character who is very strong at E0 and doesn’t need investment in his Eidolons. His E1 and E2 increase his damage and Crit Rate somewhat, but other than that, his Eidolons would only be a minor addition to his kit and are not required in Blade’s ideal build.

Blade Traces in Honkai Star Rail

Bonus Abilities:

• Vita Infinita: When Blade’s HP is at 50% or lower than his Max HP, any incoming healing is increased by 20%.
• Neverending Deaths: When Blade attacks a Weakness Broken enemy using his enhanced Basic Attack (Forest of Swords), he restores HP by a sum of 5% of his Max HP and 100.
• Cyclone of Destruction: Talent Follow-up attacks deal 20% increased damage.

Stat Boosts:

• Crit Rate Boost: 12%
• HP Boost: 28%
• Effect Resistance Boost: 10%

Best Team Comps for Blade

Blade can be played as a Destruction carry or as a Sub-DPS in Honkai Star Rail. As a carry, you need to pair him with Bronya to maximize his damage, as Bronya directly buffs the damage instead of Attack.

You will also need a strong healer, as Blade can come dangerously close to dying due to his playstyle. Luocha is the best healer for Blade due to his reactive healing, but you can also use Bailu or Natasha.

Other than that, you can have Pela or Silver Wolf for Defense shred, or Asta for extra Speed Buff. Tingyun won’t be as effective, because her kit buffs allies based on Attack, while Blade primarily scales on HP. Yukong is also a good pick if you can manage her buff uptime correctly.

You can also try playing Blade as a Sub-DPS with Jingliu as the Main DPS. Jingliu’s attacks scale based on allies’ HP. She also reduces the HP of allies each time she attacks, making her a perfect partner for Blade.

Should You Pull for Blade in Honkai Star Rail?

Blade is a powerful Destruction character with a unique playstyle in Honkai Star Rail. He is a great character to pull if you don’t have any good DPS. Also, if you have Jingliu, pairing her with Blade can do some crazy (lore-accurate) damage combos. Share your take on Blade’s best build, his playstyle, and whether you want to pull for him or not.