From the high mountains for Liyue and Inazuma to the plains of Mondstadt, Genshin Impact offers a large and diverse world. Full to the brim of content for new players to explore, and incredible scenery to boot, there will always be something new for fans of open-world RPGs.
That said, the world of Teyvat cannot be judged based only on its beauty. The terrain offers plenty of struggles for the underprepared: extreme heights, large oceans, and more rough terrain and enemies with each kilometer. Genshin Impact players should always bring along an amazing exploration character to make their journey easier. Just which Genshin Impact characters are best for exploration?
Updated on November 9th, 2021, by Scott Vengel: Genshin Impact has gone a long way since its release just over a year ago. Despite being one of the most profitable games in history, it still shows no signs of slowing down with new story quests, features, and new characters. In the last seven banners alone, a full eight new characters have been released, not to mention prospective characters like Ataraki Itto and Gorou. Naturally, quite a few exploration-heavy characters have been introduced, given Inazuma's difficult terrain and weather. With this in mind, this article will be updated to include a few more characters that have recently left quite an impression.
Overview
Generally speaking, exploration in Genshin Impact can be summed up into two major categories: travel exploration and application exploration.
Travel exploration includes skills that increase the rate of exploration itself, generally in the form of skills that increase travel speed or passive talents which reduce stamina consumption. Anemo-users especially benefit characters in this area, often increasing the amount of time in the air.
On the other hand, application exploration deals with skills that are meant to help solve specific tasks and puzzles. These characters help to complete the puzzles in Genshin Impact that increase exploration percentage on the map, typically in the form of Pyro, Electro, Cryo, or Hydro characters that can activate elemental torches.
14 Kaeya
For many Genshin Impact players, Kaeya is one of the only free characters that still has a use. As a notable Cryo support and a compelling personality, Kaeya may be best known for being a grade-A exploration character.
This comes most prominently from his ice-bridging ability. With his elemental skill, Kaeya makes for the easiest character for crossing bodies of water. Freezing the water below, Kaeya can easily shorten travel in the early game. Granted, other characters can create ice bridges faster, but none are as reliable as Kaeya.
13 Sayu
Recently added back in Inazuma's second official banner, Sayu has left Genshin Impact players with a very unique take on what exploration can be. For one, Sayu's elemental skill allows her to roll much faster than other characters can sprint, all without consuming as much stamina.
Outside of being a fast character, Sayu's passive ability also has a lot of benefits. Allowing her to approach small animals without startling them, Sayu can hunt and collect crystal flies much better than any other character in Genshin Impact's cast.
12 Amber
It's common to ridicule Amber in the Genshin Impact community for being "useless" (a source of her fair share of memes). However, behind the more difficult playstyle, Mondstadt's only outrider has the passives of a top-tier explorer. Just as the Amber memes will allude, she isn't called the "lighter" for nothing; bringing Amber along makes solving fire torch puzzles a whole lot easier.
Of course, this isn't her most notable feature. In fact, this is just a minor bonus; where Amber really succeeds comes from her passive talents. With Amber in the party, Genshin Impact players can expect to glide a whole lot more often, as she's the only character that increases flight stamina.
11 Rosaria
Only a few characters in the game have passive talents based on time or region. That said, Rosaria makes for the most notable of these characters in terms of exploration. To be specific, Rosaria's passive talent increases team movement speed during the nighttime.
Time-based passive talents are far more beneficial than regional talents, given that they can be used anywhere. Of course, Rosaria has far more benefits than just her passive. For one, her elemental skill allows her to teleport behind opponents, which makes dodging combat a little easier.
10 Zhongli
Geo constructs are the piece de resistance of Geo-users in Genshin Impact. And none are more notable for this than the Geo Archon himself, Zhongli. In the end, Zhongli has two benefits as an exploration character: his talents and his height.
As for his talents, this comes off pretty straightforward. Zhongli can create climbable pillars with his elemental skill. The benefits of this should be easy-to-see, as he can reach normally difficult to reach places. His height may come as a surprise; however, player height does play a factor in climbing and movement speed. Taller characters can do these tasks at a faster rate, and Zhongli is among the tallest in the game.
9 Keqing
Sometimes teleportation is a little more convenient than climbing. Among Keqing's talents, her elemental skill is particularly versatile among Electro-users. It's the source of DPS, enabling, and of course, exploration.
Keqing's elemental skill, Stellar Restoration, works by projecting a point with her stiletto and teleporting to it (infusing her blade with Electro in the process.) While the combat benefits of this skill are self-evident, it can also help the player in a bind by teleporting to mid-air points (like for difficult oculi) and decreasing climbing time.
8 Mona
Most characters understand the exploration benefits of ice bridging; however, one character can beat the strategy entirely. Mona has always been the master of the seas (sorry Beidou) ever since her release, with one of the best support builds in the game.
Mona was the first character in Genshin Impact to feature an alternate sprint. When she comes into contact with anything Hydro, Mona becomes a part of the water. During this time, her speed becomes heavily increased, making crossing any body of water a lot faster.
7 Ayaka
While Mona was the first alternate sprint, Ayaka perfected the art. Unlike Mona, Ayaka can use her sprint wherever she has a footing. In the end, this allows Ayaka to move quicker over both land and sea.
Of course, Mona and Ayaka aren't the only ones that have sprinting alternatives. For example, Sayu can also use her skill to move quicker than her normal sprint. That said, few characters excel in these time-saving skills as much as Ayaka does.
6 Ningguang
Sometimes, good exploration characters don't enhance movement, but the act of exploring specific areas. Ningguang certainly does, with her passive that highlights the nearest ore vein on the map.
Finding ore in Genshin Impact can be a particularly difficult task, especially when the player needs a lot in a short time. As such, Ningguang makes mining much easier, quite literally telling the player where to find patches of ore.
5 Beidou
Granted, Beidou doesn't have that much benefit when it comes to travel speed. She does have a passive ability which reduces the stamina consumption of swimming by 20%. However, outside of this, Beidou's benefits for exploration come in other areas.
Beidou is especially suited for solving puzzles in Inazuma. The region features a lot of puzzles that require Electro application, and Beidou is the only character that can solve the compass puzzles on her own. Using her shield skill, Beidou can attract the attention of the device without needing outside assistance.
4 Traveler
While most characters in Genshin Impact are limited by their own specific playstyles, this isn't the case with the Traveler. Each nation offers a different element that the Traveler can utilize, and with each element, the Traveler also has a different playstyle.
Generally speaking, this makes the Traveler the best character for elemental puzzles, though they can only currently utilize Anemo, Geo, and Electro. Of course, while each element does offer a different benefit, currently the Geo Traveler has the best skill for exploration in Genshin Impact: creating a boulder, the Geo Traveler can easily reach difficult to reach areas.
3 Xiao
Climbing makes up one of the biggest struggles for beginner Genshin Impact players exploring the world. Teyvat is no stranger to mountains with high altitudes and jagged edges, so most players have run out of stamina when climbing at least once.
Luckily for players, there's Xiao, whose passive alleviates these concerns. Xiao has a passive talent that reduces climbing stamina by 20%. This comes in addition to some of the best vertical movement in the game with his talents, heavily improving gliding.
2 Kazuha
Surprising nobody in the Genshin Impact community, the wandering samurai can wander very well. Like most Anemo characters, Kazuha was largely designed to have greater mobility in the air. For starters, Kazuha's elemental skill lifts him into the air, allowing him to traverse difficult terrain and obstacles.
In addition, Kazuha also has a passive talent that allows him to glide with a reduced stamina consumption of 20%. As such, Kazuha is a prime choice for Genshin Impact players looking for an easier time traveling by air.
1 Venti
While Xiao may have some of the best vertical movement, Venti is the one that coined the phrase, "Wouldn't gliding be faster?" Of all the characters in Genshin Impact, Venti was the first character to have his talents lift him into the air.
When using the hold version of Venti's elemental skill, Skyward Sonnet, the player will be launched into the air. Later on, Venti's first ascension will also create a temporary wind current, increasing the exploration potential of this ability. In addition, Venti has the same gliding passive as Amber, reducing gliding stamina consumption by 20%.
Genshin Impact is available on PS5, PS4, PC, Android, and iOS.