Genshin Impact allows its players to equip their characters with powerful Artifact Sets and weapons before heading into combat. Even the rarest Artifact Sets can be obtained as rewards from difficult boss fights, but the game's weapons present a trickier ordeal.
Travelers can, of course, find free weapons throughout Genshin Impact; however, players hoping to find four and five-star weapons, like the Skyward Blade, won't just be able to search Domains and treasure chests. Apart from a select few exceptions, the game's rarer weapons are only available through "Wishes," which are this game's form of the common gacha "summon" feature.
Although some of the game's four-star weapons can be crafted, every five-star weapon in Genshin Impact must be obtained via Wish. Players must expend Acquaint Fates on the game's Standard Banner, "Wanderlust Invocation," or trade in valuable Intertwined Fates in exchange for a pull from the Special Character or Weapons-only Banner. The Skyward Blade is a five-star sword, and it can be received as a reward from either the Standard Banner, or the Weapons-only Banner.
Players hoping to maximize their chances at a Skyward Blade, and only a Skyward Blade, should focus on Wishing on the Weapons-only Banner, perpetually known as "Epitome Invocation." Only weapons can be received from this Banner, which guarantees that any five-star pulled will be a five-star weapon (though it still might not be a Skyward Blade.) While the Blade will also appear when Wishing on the game's Standard Banner, players also risk receiving a five-star character in its place. While this may actually be a benefit in some players' eyes, those interested in weaponry alone will find this to be a drawback.
The Skyward Blade pertains to the game's Mondstadt Series of weapons. Although these weapons aren't Mondstadt Local Specialties, they are all affiliated with the Anemo Archon. They bear different abilities, but all share one trait: a Crit Rate increase. The Skyward Blade grants the aforementioned Crit Rate buff while also imbuing a player with "Skypiercing Might" upon use of an Elemental Burst. Skypiercing Might lasts 12 seconds, and increases a player's Movement and ATK SPD by 10 percent, while also bolstering their Normal and Charged ATK DMG by 20 percent.
When fully Refined and Enhanced, the boost to Normal and Charged ATK DMG rises to a whopping 40 percent, making the Skyward Blade one of the game's more formidable damage-boosting swords. Players hoping to snag one will have to invest in Intertwined Fates and Acquaint Fates, both of which can be purchased for 160 Primogems a piece. Alternatively, players can receive Acquaint Fates in exchange for completing various tasks, such as Ascending characters.
Genshin Impact is available now on the App Store, Google Play, PC, and PS4, and is currently in development for PS5 and Switch.