Star Rail’s Best Phainon Build

Pulling the best Honkai: Star Rail character in the latest meta will set a player up for success in endgame modes. If they want to get the most out of those units, however, they need to use the right Relic, Planar Ornament, and Light Cone combination. Phainon’s banner release is just around the corner, and based on his leaked kit and reviewer playtests, there’s already an optimal build for him. It turns out the Deliverer is quite easy to maximize.

Phainon kicks off Honkai: Star Rail 3.4’s series of banners, which are jam-packed with new units and useful rerun characters. He is a five-star Destruction-Physical unit with a kit that centers around his ultimate. Phainon stacks his 12-charge ult by getting hit by targeted abilities by allies and enemies, which also boosts his CRIT DMG. When he activates it, he takes on enemies solo, and these opponents automatically gain Physical weakness. He also gets eight extra turns, crowd control immunity, and enhanced abilities. These include powerful counterattacks, a blast attack, and an AoE flurry of meteors. For these to hit hard, however, players need to be meticulous about their item and Light Cone choices.

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Phainon’s Best Relics, Light Cones, and Planar Ornaments in Honkai: Star Rail

Phainon’s Light Cone Choices are F2P-Friendly

Since Phainon can easily break enemies with his weakness implant and abilities that scale mostly with ATK, his best light cones in Honkai: Star Rail include:

• Thus Burns the Dawn: This boosts Phainon’s base SPD and offers % DEF Ignore when he deals damage. He also gains the buff “Blazing Sun,” which increases his DMG dealt by 60% (at Superimposition 1) when he activates his ult. This LC lets him attack more often and massively multiplies his damage output, which is everything his signature should provide. It’s an obvious best in slot.
• On the Fall of an Aeon: This F2P favorite LC is also an excellent choice for Phainon because it provides an ATK boost every time Phainon wails on his enemies. It also offers an additional DMG increase after inflicting weakness break on his opponents. Since he can obliterate toughness bars easily and can attack frequently using his extra turns, this Light Cone can be a solid option for him. Players can acquire this from Herta’s Simulated Universe Shop for eight Herta bonds.

Players May Have Already Pre-Farmed Phainon’s Best Relic Set

Those who built their Hyacine may have also farmed for Phainon’s best relic set. Meanwhile, players will have to grind Divergent Universe’s Planar Extractions to get the Deliverer’s best Planar set, as it’s brand new.

• Relic Set – Wavestrider Captain: The two-piece set improves CRIT DMG by 16%. Meanwhile, the four-piece works like Phainon’s talent, as it gains stacks when the wearer gets targeted by an ally’s ability. It also works like Phainon’s LC, as it consumes the two stacks to provide a one-turn 48% ATK boost when the wearer uses their ult. It temporarily provides a big damage improvement that only Phainon can maximize with his enhanced state’s eight extra turns.

• Planar Ornament Set – Arcadia of Woven Dreams: This set is optimized for Phainon’s ultimate, as it provides an up to 12% DMG buff to the wearer for each missing ally target. Again, only Phainon can take advantage of this effect at the moment, since he’s the only existing character to be able to take multiple allies out of battle at will.

Phainon can rack up and use multiple buffs for a sustained period, allowing him to consistently deal millions of points of damage in his enhanced state. He’s also easy to build, with a great free-to-play light cone option and items that seem to be tailored to his unique kit. Those who want to further optimize his damage should obtain Wavestrider Captain and Arcadia of Woven Dreams pieces with ATK%, CRIT Rate, CRIT DMG, and SPD stats.