Every character in Genshin Impact has a role they're most suitable at. Some characters earn the title jack-of-all-trades due to their flexibility, but in return for their capability for everything, they become the master-of-none. This is why dedicated and niche units are better options if players could get their hands on them. For example, while Kujou Sara is worse than Bennett, she still enhances Electro units' performance in a way that Bennett can't.
When it comes to Genshin Impact Hu Tao and Yelan, each has a role they're best in. Director Hu is best as a main DPS, while Yelan is a top-tier sub-DPS. Because of this, choosing between Hu Tao and Yelan in Genshin Impact isn't that complicated.
Hu Tao And Yelan In Genshin Impact
Hu Tao is a totally different unit from Yelan in Genshin Impact. Both characters can be considered DPS with a slight distinction in their playstyle. Gameplay-wise, Hu Tao takes more field time and needs the help of other characters to maximize her DMG while Yelan barely takes any field time and can help other units with her massive off-field DMG. To decide between pulling for Yelan or Hu Tao, players have to compare:
- Their weapons
- Their artifacts
- Their Roles
Weapons
Both Hu Tao and Yelan have an easier time finding their preferred weapon since both gain CRIT DMG and CRIT Rate respectively when ascending. With a good 5-star Polearm like Staff of Homa or Staff Of The Scarlet Sands, Hu Tao is one of the best DPS in Genshin Impact. She performs decently with 4-star weapons like Dragon’s bane and Deathmatch, while her best F2P option would be Blackcliff Pole.
On the other hand, Yelan operates best with Aqua Simulacra, a 5-star Bow that is usually referred to as the Staff of Homa of Bows. As for the 4-star weapons, Favonius Warbow is one of Yelan's best weapons in Genshin Impact, which speaks volumes about how easy it is to build her. For beginner players, they can even use the 3-star Bows, Recurve Bow or Slingshot.
Artifacts
When it comes to Artifacts, both Hu Tao and Yelan builds are straightforward in Genshin Impact. Hu Tao performs best with 4-Crimson Witch of Flames While Yelan’s off-field DMG is notably amplified using 4-Emblem of Severed Fate. Building Hu Tao on other artifacts can prove to be challenging if players are aiming to not lose her overall DMG. As for Yelan, she can perform pretty much the same with a large pool of artifact choices.
Roles
In terms of gameplay, Hu Tao’s mechanics demands her to stay for around ten seconds on the field until she's near the end of her Paramita Papilio state and unleashes her Elemental Burst. She's a main DPS that drives the team's off-field applications to produce some of the highest attacks in Genshin Impact. Without a proper team, Hu Tao severely suffers and her DMG drops notably.
Yelan is the type of character that fit in any team composition, especially Hu Tao's team compositions in Genshin Impact. She enables some Hydro-related reactions like Vaporize or Bloom. Of course, her DMG is also high if she was built on Emblem of Severed Fate, which adds more to her importance as an off-field DPS/Support.
Hu Tao VS Yelan In Genshin Impact
To summarize, players should pull for Hu Tao if they:
- Own suitable weapons like Staff of Homa, Staff of the Scarlet Sands, or R5 Dragon’s Bane.
- Have collected Crimson Witch of Flames with the right main and sub-stats.
- Want a DPS that can carry the team and produces some of the best DMG in the game.
- Enjoy Hu Tao’s mechanics.
To summarize, players should pull for Yelan if they:
- Own Aqua Simulacra, R5 Favonius Warbow, or other viable weapons.
- Don’t want to bother farming the correct artifact sets for their new unit.
- Want an off-field DPS that can deal some great DMG while supporting the team to inflict even more DMG.
- Can’t get enough of including Xingqiu in every team composition.
Genshin Impact is now available on Mobile, PC, PS4, and PS5. A Switch version is in development.