Honkai: Star Rail Version 2.3 is the debut of the 5-star character Firefly, who is also known as the Stellaron Hunter Sam. Firefly started out as an endearing secondary character during the Penacony storyline, whose main purpose is to live her best life while exploring the planet. Now, she is known among Honkai: Star Rail fans as one of the strongest DPS characters.

Firefly is a Fire-type Destruction character that deals significant Break DMG to weaken enemies' toughness. She fits well with Honkai: Star Rail's current meta that heavily focuses on Break Effect stats, especially after the introduction of the new Super Break damage type. It's actually interesting to see how Firefly manages to open up new meta options in Honkai: Star Rail and how players are adapting.

Honkai Star Rail_ Should You Pull For Firefly or Jade
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Honkai: Star Rail - Should You Pull for Firefly or Jade

With many strong characters up and coming, deciding between Firefly or Jade in Honkai: Star Rail depends on certain factors.

How Firefly Thrives in Honkai: Star Rail's Current Meta

A screenshot from Honkai: Star Rail showing the Female Trailblazer and Firefly.

Name

Firefly

Element and Path

Fire, Path of Destruction

Break Damage Meta Explained

Honkai: Star Rail's meta is dependent on the types of characters being released and the types of enemies that players will face. The debut of the Harmony Trailblazer in Version 2.2, who has the ability to deal Super Break DMG to enemies, signaled the start of the Break Damage meta. This was further emphasized through Honkai: Star Rail's new toughness mechanic, which adds additional layers of toughness to certain enemies' life bars, and shared HP bars. This was mostly evident in Penacony's final boss battle, where Super Break came in handy to shave off HP from multiple enemies.

Maximizing Firefly's Massive Damage in Honkai: Star Rail

With Break DMG and Super Break being the bread and butter of Firefly's kit, her priority stats and equipment are designed to enhance these traits. The beauty of using Firefly is that she doesn't need a lot of CRIT stats to deal overwhelming damage, because she's able to cut HP and toughness in half with the right items and upgrades. Additionally, her Ultimate ability also allows her to ignore enemy weakness and also apply Fire weakness to enemies.

To fully maximize Firefly's damage abilities, it's important for Honkai: Star Rail players to create a team composition that empowers her abilities. So far, the best Honkai: Star Rail team for Firefly features Harmony Trailblazer for their Super Break, Ruan Mei for extra damage buffs, and Gallagher as the healer and cleanser. This comp turns Firefly into a strong damage dealer that can take out multiple enemies at a time.

  • Trailblazer (Imaginary, Path of Harmony): Super Break buff
  • Ruan Mei (Ice, Path of Harmony): Damage buff and resistance penetration
  • Gallagher (Fire, Path of Abundance): Healer and debuff cleanser

There are also a number of alternative characters that Honkai: Star Rail fans can use in their Firefly teams, especially if they weren't able to pull for Ruan Mei. For example, Bronya, who is a 5-star character that can be obtained via the standard Warp banner, is a great damage buffer and can advance Firefly's movement forward. Another viable 5-star unit is Himeko, whose follow-up attack does Fire damage whenever allies deal Break DMG. Players also shouldn't sleep on 4-star characters, such as Asta, Guinaifen, and Pela, as they can offer buffs and debuffs that can benefit Firefly in battle.

  • Bronya (Wind, Path of Harmony): Damage buffer and advances the strongest ally's movement forward
  • Himeko (Fire, Path of Erudition): AoE damage and follow-up attacks
  • Asta (Fire, Path of Harmony): SPD and ATK buffer
  • Guinaifen (Fire, Path of Nihility): Deals Fire DoT
  • Pela (Ice, Path of Nihility): Removes enemy buffs and reduces DEF

Honkai: Star Rail's Break Damage meta might be around in the next few updates, so expect Firefly to be the go-to DPS for enemies with additional toughness and shared HPs. She, along with Harmony Trailblazer, could also signal the start of a Break Damage trend among future banner characters.