Honkai: Star Rail has introduced a variety of awesome characters lately, but a majority of them fulfill the DPS role, such as Archeron or Yunli. If you’ve been wanting a new character with a much different role, you should be excited about Jiaoqiu. This Fire Nihility character is all about debuffing enemies and dealing continuous damage over time (DoT).
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Jiaoqiu’s play style centers around inflicting stacks of his unique “Ashen Roast” debuff on enemies. It’s essentially a Burned state that also makes them susceptible to taking increased damage. His kit allows him to inflict it quite often, which will help the rest of your team in battle. From Light Cones to Relics, here’s everything you need to know to build out this new character.
Best Jiaoqiu team composition
Jiaoqiu’s lower damage output means he plays the role of a Debuff Support better than a DPS. You’ll want to use him with characters that can best take advantage of his debuffs, such as a Nihility DPS or general DoT-based teams.
Archeron is arguably the best character to be supported by Jiaoqiu. Not only can his status as a fellow Nihility character satisfy her bonus ability, but his constant barrage of debuffs will help build up her Slashed Dream stacks. Other Nihility DPS that can add on to other DoTs, such as Kafka, will also benefit.
Sparkle and Asta can be wonderful choices if you’re looking to use him with another Support. The former is better used when the team has one main DPS. Jiaoqiu should rarely be using his Basic Attack anyway, so the extra skill points from Sparkle will come in handy too. Asta, on the other hand, is more flexible, with her buffs helping any team take advantage of Jiaoqiu’s debuffs. Her Fire DMG-increasing bonus ability doesn’t just benefit DPS like Firefly either, since the DoT from Ashen Roast will enjoy the advantages too.
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Anyone who can heal should round out the team, but Huohuo and Gallagher stand out the most. Huohuo’s ultimate is incredibly useful as it regenerates energy and boosts the team’s ATK stats. The debuffs Gallagher can inflict with the Besotted state and his enhanced attack will pair nicely with what Jiaoqiu is capable of.
Best Jiaoqiu Light Cones
Depending on how you want Jiaoqiu to support your team, you can equip him with a variety of different light cones. Priority is best given to any that increase his Effect Hit Rate so that he can more consistently apply his Ashen Roast debuff.
5-star Honkai: Star Rail characters always benefit the most from the 5-star Light Cones that run alongside their banner. In Jiaoqiu’s case, Those Many Springs is the ideal choice. It provides a massive buff to Effect Hit Rate and allows him to apply additional debuffs that increase the damage taken by enemies.
Two more excellent 5-star options are Incessant Rain and Reforged Remembrance, which are the limited-time Light Cones available alongside Silver Wolf and Black Swan. Both contribute an increased Effect Hit Rate and buffs to damage. You’ll need a team that can dish out multiple debuff types to make the best use of their additional benefits though.
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Onto the more accessible 4-star choices, I recommend Eyes of the Prey and Resolution Shines As Pearls of Sweat. The former provides simple buffs to both Effect Hit Rate and DoT, while the latter can inflict a debuff on enemies that will lower their DEF.
Which Traces to prioritize
Playing Jiaoqiu revolves around stacking his Ashen Roast debuff as consistently as possible. Managing this can feel a little difficult at times, but focusing on certain traces will make it far easier. These are the best ones to invest in.
- Quarter Finesse, Octave Finery – Upgrading his talent will increase how much DMG enemies will receive thanks to the Ashen Roast stacks. Considering that this debuff is the core of his strategy, it’s vital to prioritize this trace.
- Pyrograph Arcanum – Nearly as important as Jiaoqiu’s talent is his Ultimate. Upgrading this trace will increase the initial DMG dealt by the attack, along with the increases to general Ultimate DMG and the chance of applying Ashen Roast while the zone is active.
- Seared Scent – This bonus ability is the perfect addition to his Ultimate. Any enemies that enter combat while the Zone is active will have Ashen Roast stacks applied to them, equal to the highest amount on the field.
Best Jiaoqiu Relic Sets
Finding the right relics for Jiaoqiu isn’t as obvious as it is for other characters. It will all come down to what kind of team you’re placing him on. Even then, you’ll likely need to mix and match with different sets to make for the best build. Here are the ideal Relic and Planar Ornament sets to enhance Jiaoqiu.
- Prisoner in Deep Confinement is a great choice if you want to increase Jiaoqiu’s damage output. Having two pieces increases ATK by 12 percent, while four pieces will ignore enemy DEF depending on how many DoTs they have. The only caveat is that the four-piece effect will be more efficient if your team can inflict up to three DoT debuffs on enemies.
- Messenger Traversing Hackerspace can be a huge help if you need him to move a bit faster. The two-piece effect increases SPD by 6 percent, which is beneficial as a Support character. You likely won’t get as much use from the four-piece effect, so I recommend pairing this with the previously mentioned Prisoner in Deep Confinement.
- Sprightly Vonwacq is a fantastic Planar Ornament set to equip. It increases Energy Regen by 5 percent and will boost Jiaoqiu’s action at the beginning of the battle if his SPD stat is 120 or higher. Having him go first at the start of every battle is ideal so that he can set up his debuffs.
Few Honkai: Star Rail characters are capable of overwhelming enemies the way Jiaoqiu can. The abundance of debuffs he can offload is the perfect setup for other characters to take advantage of. If you enjoy melting your opponents with stacks of debuffs and DoT, Jiaoqiu is a satisfying Support for your teams.
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