Genshin Impact playable characters each have a vision that allows them to make use of one of seven elements in the game. Beyond this, they are also distinguished by their choice of weapon, of which there are currently five options. There are a ton of potential weapon and element combinations in the game, yet the Polearm weapon type remains criminally underused by all of Teyvat's inhabitants. This is a sore spot for a lot of players because the spear and similar weapons are very popular in anime and video games, not to mention it was historically the most commonly used weapon of all.
Genshin Impact is constantly changing, so this issue may well be fixed in the future. At the time of writing (December 2020), there are only two available characters in the game that use Polearms, meaning only two of the game's six represented elements have characters with this weapon. That is something that is set to change with a few upcoming characters, but there's no telling when these characters will come. With the great number and variety of other weapon types, players are quite confused about the lack of Polearm users currently in the game.
Genshin Impact's Polearm Characters (December 2020)
As previously mentioned, there are only two available Polearm using characters in the game, those being Xiangling and Zhongli. Notably, both of these characters hail from the Liyue region, and one is 4-stars while the other is 5-stars. Thankfully, Xiangling is given out for free to any player that can manage to clear floor 3-3 in the Spiral Abyss, so everyone at least has a chance to play with a Polearm character, but Zhongli is a different story entirely.
As a 5-star character, Zhongli is by default difficult to get, but he was also one of the featured characters on a limited time event banner. While this made him easier to acquire during his event, it is now impossible for players to get Zhongli now that his banner has expired. This means that, for those that weren't lucky enough to pull him before version 1.2 dropped, Xiangling is the only playable Polearm character in the game. To make matters worse, while neither character is bad by any stretch of the imagination, they certainly aren't S Tier characters either. Zhongli is set to receive some buffs once the version 1.3 update drops that should make him better, but for the time being both these Polearm characters are somewhat underwhelming.
Genshin Impact Elements Without Polearms
Since Xiangling and Zhongli belong to the Pyro and Geo elements respectively, that means that the other four elements represented by playable characters in Genshin Impact are completely without Polearm characters. There is no character in the game that mixes any of the Anemo, Hydro, Cryo, or Electro elements with the Polearm weapon fighting style despite some of these seeming like they'd be very cool to see. Electro in particular would complement the quick and deadly strikes of the Polearm well, but there aren't even any rumored characters to fill that niche.
As if to draw more attention to this glaring flaw, several elements in Genshin Impact have more than one character that use a given weapon. For example, there are two Anemo characters that use swords (Jean and Traveler), two Cryo characters that use swords (Kaeya and Qiqi with another on the way), two Electro characters that use Claymores (Razor and Beidou), and two Hydro characters that use Catalysts (Barbara and Mona). It's strange that Genshin Impact's developer, miHoYo, saw fit to include so many duplicate combinations when there are still so few Polearm characters in the game.
Upcoming Polearm Characters in Genshin Impact
The issue is set to be addressed, albeit in a minor way. At the very least, fans know that a new character named Xiao should be coming to Genshin Impact in the near future, although it's not clear when. Xiao is an Adepti that the Traveler meets during the Liyue story arc, and he is confirmed to make use of an Anemo vision and a Polearm. This will make him the first Anemo Polearm character and the second 5-star Polearm character altogether. While this is great, it still locks the use of this weapon (outside of Xiangling) to 5-star characters.
Finally, another character named Cyno is rumored to be added to the game eventually, but that is likely still a very long ways off. This character was introduced in the official Genshin Impact manga and also appeared during the Genshin Impact chapter reveal trailer. It's unclear what type of Vision he has, but he has been shown to wield a Polearm in his art. It's still too early to guess at what element this character will be or whether or not he'll be a 5-star or 4-star, but at least there's plans for more Polearm characters.
Polearm Weapons in Genshin Impact
Like other weapons in Genshin Impact, there are a wide variety of choices for Polearm users. Players can pick between three 5-star Polearms, nine 4-star Polearms, three 3-star Polearms, and the usual assortment of 1-star and 2-star Polearms. This great diversity is really wasted, though, as with only two characters there are some pretty obvious choices. Many of the available Polearms suit playstyles that neither of these characters make use of, leaving players to question why they are even in the game if there are no Polearm characters to use them. Many instead opt to use a Northlander Polearm Prototype to forge the Crescent Pike.
A great example of this is the new 4-star Polearm added in Genshin Impact's Dragonspine expasnion. The Dragonspine Polearm is forged from dragon teeth and both looks really cool and has powerful effects, but there isn't much use for it. While it's serviceable on characters like Zhongli and Xiangling, both of them are better suited for support roles by nature of their kit. Even in the event that players are building them as a Primary DPS, the Crescent Pike that is already in the game is comparable in terms of damage output. Hopefully new characters are introduced soon that make this weapon type more viable, but until then, players will have to settle for Xiangling.
Genshin Impact is available now on Mobile, PC, and PS4, and later on Switch.
