Being a 1.x character, Blade has unsurprisingly suffered the wrath of power creep in Honkai: Star Rail. Luckily for his fans, HoYoverse has buffed Blade in the Honkai: Star Rail 3.4 update. In the 3.4 update, Blade, along with Kafka, Silver Wolf, and Jingliu, has received massive buffs to his kit, making him strong in the current meta of the game.
Even before the buffs, Blade had started to see a rise in the game’s meta as most combat started favoring AoE and HP-scaling units, along with powerful supports like Tribbie and Hyacine. With the 3.4 buffs, Blade is now a powerful unit and can stand up to late 2.x characters and even 3.x characters if you have one of his best Light Cones or his first Eidolon.
Below, we have provided an in-depth guide to the best Blade build in Honkai: Star Rail based on his new buffs in the 3.4 update.
Best Blade Light Cones in Honkai: Star Rail
| 5-star Light Cones | 4-star Light Cones |
|---|---|
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At his release, Blade didn’t have many good Light Cone options, which was one of his major downsides. Luckily, that’s no longer the case. Here are some great 5-star and 4-star Light Cones for Blade in Honkai: Star Rail:
1) Flame of Blood, Blaze My Path
| Increases the wearer’s Max HP by 18/21/24/27/30% and Incoming Healing by 20/25/30/35/40%. When using Skill or Ultimate, consumes HP equal to 6/6.5/7/7.5/8% of the wearer’s Max HP and increases the DMG dealt by this attack by 30/35/40/45/50%. If this effect’s consumed HP is greater than 500, the DMG additionally increases by 30/35/40/45/50%. If the current HP is not sufficient, this effect reduces the wearer’s current HP down to 1. |
Mydei’s signature Light Cone, Flame of Blood, Blaze My Path, is the best for Blade in Honkai: Star Rail. Along with 18% HP, this LC also offers an incoming healing bonus to help with Blade’s survivability and let him deal more damage. Moreover, when Blade uses his skill or ultimate, this Light Cone causes him to take damage and gives a stack to his talent.
Because of this effect, you will be able to frequently trigger his follow-up attacks. On top of that, Flame of Blood, Blaze My Path has the highest HP among all Destruction Light Cones in Honkai: Star Rail.
2) The Unreachable Side
| Increases the wearer’s CRIT rate by 18/21/24/27/30% and increases their Max HP by 18/21/24/27/30%. When the wearer is attacked or consumes their own HP, their DMG increases by 24/28/32/36/40%. This effect is removed after the wearer uses an attack. |
Blade’s signature Light Cone, The Unreachable Side, is unsurprisingly good for him. It buffs both his CRIT Rate and HP% by 18%. The second part of the passive increases his DMG by 24% when hit or when his HP is consumed. This effect is easy to trigger—especially now—as Blade gets a bigger taunt value with his skill activated, thanks to the new 3.4 buffs.
3) Dance at Sunset
| Greatly increases the odds that the wearer will be attacked and increases the wearer’s CRIT DMG by 36/42/48/54/60%. After the wearer uses their Ultimate, they receive 1 stack of Firedance, lasting for 2 turns and up to 2 stacks. Each stack of Firedance increases the DMG dealt by the wearer’s follow-up attack by 36/42/48/54/60%. |
If you don’t have either of the above two Light Cones, then Yunli’s signature Light Cone, Dance at Sunset, works well for Blade. It increases Blade’s taunt value, naturally causing him to take more hits from enemies. At S1, you get a sweet 36% CRIT DMG increase. Lastly, on using his ultimate, Blade gets a stack of Firedance lasting for two turns. This stack increases follow-up attack DMG by 36%.
This Light Cone is better suited for Yunli, as it’s slightly better than the next Light Cone, which is a free 4-star LC.
4) Ninja Record: Sound Hunt (S5)
| Increases the wearer’s Max HP by 12/15/18/21/24%. When losing or restoring this unit’s HP, increases CRIT DMG by 18/22.5/27/31.5/36%, lasting for 2 turn(s). This effect can only trigger once per turn. |
Ninja Record: Sound Hunt is a free 4-star Destruction LC given away in the HSR 2.6 event. However, if you don’t have it, you can always get it from the Herta Shop. At S5, this Light Cone increases Blade’s max HP by 24% and increases his CRIT DMG by 36% on HP fluctuation. If you are an F2P player, then Ninja Record: Sound Hunt is the best Light Cone for Blade.
If you don’t have Ninja Record: Sound Hunt and have no currency to buy it from the Herta Shop, then these two 4-stars can work well temporarily:
- A Secret Vow – Gacha 4-star Light Cone
- Flames Afar – Available in the Forgotten Hall Store
Best Relic Sets and Planetary Ornament Sets for Blade in Honkai: Star Rail
| Recommended Relic Set | Effect |
|---|---|
 | 2-piece: Increases Max HP by 12%. 4-piece: When the wearer is hit or has their HP consumed by an ally or themselves, their CRIT Rate increases by 8% for 2 turn(s) and up to 2 stacks. |
There hasn’t been any new decent relic set in Honkai: Star Rail for Blade yet. Considering the HSR 3.4 buffs, Longevous Disciple is still the best relic set for Blade. In fact, it has become even better, as Blade now scales completely off HP.
Longevous Disciple has the following 2-piece and 4-piece effects:
- 2-piece: Increases HP by 12%
- 4-piece: When the wearer is hit or has their HP consumed by an ally or themselves, their CRIT Rate increases by 8% for 2 turns, stacking up to 2 times.
The 4-piece effect is easy for Blade to trigger, as his whole kit revolves around HP fluctuations. But if you don’t have a good 4-piece Longevous Disciple set, you can use a combination of the following relic sets:
- Longevous Disciple: +12% HP
- Scholar of the Lost Erudition: +8% CRIT Rate
- Eagle of Twilight Line: +10% Wind DMG
| Recommended Planetary Sets | Effect |
|---|---|
 | Increases the wearer’s Max HP by 12%. When the wearer’s Max HP is 5000 or higher, increases the wearer’s and their memosprite’s CRIT DMG by 28%. |
 | Increases the wearer’s ATK by 12%. When entering battle, if at least one other ally follows the same Path as the wearer, then the wearer’s CRIT Rate increases by 12%. |
 | Increases the wearer’s CRIT Rate by 8%. When the wearer’s current CRIT Rate reaches 70% or higher, the wearer’s Basic ATK and Skill DMG increase by 20%. |
 | Increases the wearer’s CRIT Rate by 8%. When the wearer’s current CRIT Rate reaches 50% or higher, the wearer’s Ultimate and follow-up attack DMG increases by 15%. |
Now, let’s discuss the best Planetary Ornament sets for Blade. When it comes to Planetary sets, Blade has a few different options. The Bone Collection’s Serene Demesne is the best Planetary set for Blade in HSR. It gives a simple 12% HP boost and increases Blade’s CRIT DMG by 28% when his max HP surpasses 5000.
Other viable Planetary sets include:
- Izumo Gensei and Takama Divine Realm
- Rutilant Arena
- Inert Salsotto
Best Stats for Buffed Blade in Honkai: Star Rail
The ATK stat is now completely useless for Blade, as he scales purely off HP. Here are the recommended main stats for relics and Planetary sets:
- Body: CRIT DMG > CRIT Rate (because he gets a lot of CRIT Rate from relics, traces, and teammates)
- Feet: SPD or HP%
- Planar Sphere: Wind DMG% or HP%
- Link Rope: HP%
Sub-stats priority:
- SPD (until you hit the breakpoint of 134)
- CRIT Rate
- CRIT DMG
- HP%
Best Teams for Blade in Honkai: Star Rail after his buffs
Since his release at the start of HSR, Blade has received many powerful teammates, especially in recent patches. Characters like Tribbie, Hyacine, and Sunday are among the best teammates for Blade. Below are the best team comps for Blade:
1) Hypercarry Blade with Sunday, Tribbie, and Hyacine
Yes, the other side might finally be reachable for Blade after the new buffs. You can now play a hypercarry setup with Sunday, Tribbie, and Hyacine. Sunday and Tribbie are two of the best buffers in HSR, offering universal buffs useful to all characters, including Blade. Hyacine is an excellent healer who increases the entire party’s HP, helping both Tribbie and Blade deal more damage. Moreover, if you have Hyacine’s Light Cone, it will help Blade trigger his follow-up attacks more frequently.
You can replace:
- Tribbie with supports like Ruan Mei or Remembrance MC, or debuffers like Cipher or Silver Wolf (also buffed in 3.4)
- Sunday with Bronya (though her ATK% buff doesn’t benefit Blade now)
- Hyacine with another healer (avoid shielders for Blade teams)
Example teams:
- Blade, Sunday, Tribbie, Hyacine
- Blade, Bronya, Tribbie, Gallagher
- Blade, Bronya, Silver Wolf, Luocha
- Blade, Bronya, Ruan Mei, Gallagher
2) Blade as a Castorice Support
Castorice is a unique character who wants her teammates to lose and gain HP to recharge her Ultimate. Since Blade does exactly that, he is one of her best teammates in a dual DPS setup. Castorice doesn’t need a second DPS to clear content, but Blade helps her Ultimate uptime significantly.
Example teams:
- Castorice, Blade, Tribbie, Hyacine
- Castorice, Blade, Tribbie, Gallagher
- Castorice, Blade, Tribbie, Luocha
- Castorice, Blade, Remembrance MC, Hyacine
- Castorice, Blade, Remembrance MC, Gallagher
- Castorice, Blade, Ruan Mei, Gallagher
Buffed Blade: Skill Priority
Last but not least, let’s discuss Blade’s skill priority. None of the new Blade buffs affect his skill or trace priorities. They remain the same as at release: level up his Basic Attack first, followed by Talent, then Skill, and finally Ultimate.
As for Traces, unlock all major and minor traces, as every single one is useful and contributes to Blade’s damage output.
Also Read: Honkai: Star Rail Phainon Release Date, Ascension Materials, Abilities, Eidolons and more