Pyro, Cryo, Hydro, Electro, Geo, Anemo, and Dendro. These are the elements that make up the identity of Genshin Impact’s combat system. While the game does bear heavy similarities to Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Genshin Impact stems out of the identity crisis with its combination of element attacks. In today’s blog, we will discuss the various combinations that you can do using the elements in your party as well as some great character chemistries.
The Importance of Elemental Attacks
There are over a dozen ways to attack your opponents using character elements. Not only are they useful in just about any situation but they stack up on the overall damage besides the character’s base attack and critical hit. In a game like this, combinations are everything especially if you are in a time trial like the abyss or domain.
Moreover, some specific enemies specialize in one or two specific elements. To defeat them quicker, you need the right characters with the right elements.
Knowing Enemy Elements
There are too many enemy types to discuss in this article so we will just focus on their elements. For every strength that they have, you can counter them with big weaknesses.
Certain enemies like abyss mages, agents, and pyro whomperflowers can deal annoyingly big damage to you if you aren’t careful. The best way to defeat them is either hydro or electro. Cryo may work too but the Melt debuff doesn’t do much.
Now let’s talk about the Cicin mages, sergeants, and cryo whomperflowers. Many will agree that this is arguably the most annoying type of enemy to face because if they hit you with cryo while you are in a wet debuff, you will understand the meaning of “hell freezes over”. Defeat them with a pyro character.
Hydro enemies are perhaps one of the easiest enemies to counter. They can still be as annoying as Cryo if you aren’t careful – especially ones that create bubbles. The best counters to them are just about any element. Although a Cryo character can freeze them solid. Meanwhile, Electro enemies are arguably easy to deal with. All you need is a good Hydro, Pyro, or Cryo character to overcharge their elements.
Next, are the Geo enemies. They are among the toughest types and the best way to defeat Geo is with a hero from the same element. This is where Noelle, Albedo, Zhongli, and Ningguang shine best since they can destroy rock armor easily. Dendro enemies are rare but they can get quite annoying especially if they can manipulate plants. Of course, a Pyro character is best here to destroy the evil form of nature. Likewise, Anemo enemies are rare to encounter too. Although, they can be defeated by just about every other element thanks to the Swirl debuff.
Debuff Combos to Remember
We’ll discuss the element combinations and then give you sample party members that work well for it. Take note that these are just examples and you are free to mix and match the characters you want.
The Conduit Relationship of Electro
We’ll first discuss the elements that have powerful reactions with Electro. For example, Electro and Cryo form huge burst damages called Superconduct. It’s an ideal debuff for DPS characters. Moreover, burst-type characters work well together. That includes Ganyu + Keqing, Chongyun + Beidou, and Kaeya + Razor. For utility type, go with Qiqi + Lisa or Diona + Fischl.
Next up is the Electro and Pyro combination called Overload. It’s an explosive reaction that deals the biggest damage among all elemental combos. Great to destroy waves of enemies in a short time. Overload works well with attack speeds such as Xinyan + Keqing, Xiangling + Beidou or Hu Tao + Lisa. For burst damage, go with Klee + Razor, Bennett + Beidou, or Diluc + Fischl. If you like a slow but guaranteed large damage output, try out Amber + Lisa.
A small but gradual damage that shocks enemies for a few seconds is called Electro Charge. This reaction slowly depletes enemy health as long as they’re both near each other. It’s a nice way to gradually defeat enemies but the conditions are tricky. For it to tick, enemies affected with the charge must remain within range of the chain lightning. For big crit damage, go with Barbara + Keqing, Mona + Lisa, Xingqiu + Fischl, or Childe + Beidou.
The Polar Reaction of The Cryo Element
Arguably one of the best debuffs in the game that stops enemy movement is the Frozen reaction. It halts enemies affected with Hydro by adding a Cryo element on top of their debuff. Stop your foes for around 2 seconds or more with Barbara + Ganyu, Xingqiu + Kaeya. Childe + Qiqi, Mona + Diona or Mona + Rosaria.
Melt is a polarizing elemental combination wherein its damage is dependent on the character. It does not debuff anybody except for additional elemental damage. Yet, this is good against element-specific enemies. You can choose whoever you want here but it all depends on enemy types. Try out Amber + Ganyu, Xinyan + Qiqi, Klee + Diona, Diluc + Kaeya or Hu Tao + Rosaria.
More Significant Elemental Combinations
Arguably the weakest debuff in the game is Vaporize. It doesn’t serve any purpose except to unmelt enemies. However, this is good if you are fighting an elemental enemy that is the opposite of Hydro or Pyro. This is especially good against cryo mages and cicin mages. Experiment with Hu Tao + Barbara, Diluc + Childe, Klee + Mona, or Bennett + Xingqiu.
A great combo that can turn stone-hard enemies into brittle bones is Crystallize. It’s great against Geo-armored enemies. Shield enemies and Geovishaps are no match for crystallized debuffs. Burst damage with Noelle + Hu Tao, Albedo + Bennett, Traveler (Geo) + Keqing, Ningguang + Ganyu, or Zhongli + Keqing.
Swirl is very niche elemental power that furthers the duration of the elemental debuff. There are no rights or wrongs with Anemo characters. It can be anyone as long as they possess the anemo power. So far, there are only three of them. For general utility, go with Traveler (Anemo) + Kaeya, Jean + Diluc, Jean + Klee, or Jean + Lisa. For longer lasting winds, combine, Sucrose + Albedo, Sucrose + Keqing, Sucrose + Hu Tao or Sucrose + Ganyu. But if you want the biggest Swirl damage, play around with Venti + everyone else.
Playing The Way You See Fit
Overall, the elemental reactions give you an edge on the battlefield and can get you out of tricky situations. However, the best way to play the game is to do it in accordance with your playstyle. We hope the guide helps but if you want to experiment with the various elements yourself, go ahead and play Genshin Impact for free on PC. Also, check out other games with cool combos like Honkai Impact 3 and Fate Grand Order.
