Honkai: Star Rail, the upcoming turn-based game from HoYoVerse, is set to offer players a Gacha system similar to Genshin Impact. This system includes a pity system and pulling mechanics that allow players to obtain new characters and light cones, which act as weapons. Additionally, the game features elements from both Genshin Impact and Honkai Impact 3rd, making it an exciting and highly anticipated addition to the genre.
Despite sharing similarities with other games from the same developer, Honkai: Star Rail has its own unique setting and terminology, which may be overwhelming for both the seasoned players of the franchise and for those that are new to it. It's important for players to understand the pulling system to obtain desired characters or light cones for a better gaming experience.
5 Know The Different Warp Banners
In Honkai: Star Rail, the game's gacha system is called Warp and it offers four different types of banners: Starter Warp, Standard Warp, Character Event Warp, and Weapon Event Warp. Each banner has its own unique rules, duration, and pool of obtainable items. The Standard Banner features all Standard 5-star characters, Standard 5-star Light Cones, and 4-star and below items, and is permanently available.
Meanwhile, the Character Event Warp provides an increased chance to obtain the promoted 5-star character and three promoted 4-star characters, as well as other standard 5-star characters and 4-star and below items, for a limited time. These banners rotate between new and returning characters. Players who desire a specific 5-star character should pull from the Character Event Warp, as it doesn't include 5-star Light Cones, while the Weapon Event Warp banners don't allow players to pull any 5-star characters.
4 Make Use of The Departure Warp Early
The Departure Warp, also known as the Starter Warp, is a warp-limited banner in Honkai: Star Rail that comes with unique rules. Unlike the Standard Warp or the Character Event Warp, this banner disappears after 50 pulls and offers a 20% discount on warps or Stellar Jade, the game's equivalent of Primogems from Genshin Impact.
It's important to note that the Starter Warp guarantees a 5-star Standard character within 50 pulls, making it a cost-effective way to get a boost early in the game. While it doesn't offer any 5-star Light Cones, players are guaranteed to obtain a 4-star Character or Light Cone every 10 Warps.
3 Know The Pity System Odds
In Honkai: Star Rail, the pity system guarantees players a 5-star item or character after a certain number of attempts at a specific banner. The pity system works on a "soft pity" and "hard pity" system. Soft pity means that as players get closer to the pity count, their chances of receiving a 5-star item or character will gradually increase. Hard pity means that once a player reaches the pity count, they are guaranteed a 5-star item or character on their next pull.
Honkai: Star Rail's pity count works similarly to Genshin Impact, with the standard and limited-time character banners requiring 90 Warp attempts to guarantee a 5-star item or character, while the limited-time light cone banners require 80. If a player obtains a 5-star item or character before reaching the pity count, the count will reset. It's worth noting that the pity count isn't shared between different Warp banner types, but it is carried over to the next limited-time special warp banners. For instance, if a player has 75 pity on the current special warp character banner, they'll need to do up to 15 pulls on the next banner to guarantee a 5-star character. Additionally, if the first 5-star character obtained in a special Warp event isn't the promotional character, the next 5-star character obtained will be guaranteed to be the promotional one. The same applies to the 4-star characters and light cones as well, however with the pity count being 10, and the boosted chance being divided between the three promoted options.
2 Don't Be Tempted To Pull All Characters
It's worth noting that while the Gacha system may be familiar to some players, it may be a new experience for others. In essence, the Gacha system allows players to use in-game currency or real-world money to purchase a chance at obtaining a random item or character. The pity system is a safety net put in place to ensure that players who have had a string of bad luck with their pulls will eventually obtain a high-rarity item or character after a set number of pulls. Despite this, it can still be quite alluring for players to attempt to pull every available character, which could lead to them using a significant amount of their in-game resources or even real-world money.
It is important to keep in mind that players can still enjoy Honkai: Star Rail's gameplay without having all the characters, or many 5-star characters. This is because the freely given 4-star starter characters, such as the MC, March 7th, Natasha, and Den Heng, are quite powerful compared to most Genshin Impact starter characters. As such, players can focus on building these characters rather than trying to obtain all the others. Additionally, after 300 pulls on the Standard Banner, players will be able to choose one of the standard 5-star characters, which is helpful for completing the collection. It is expected that future events within the game will offer other characters or light cones for free, but they will most likely be 4-stars, following the example set by Genshin Impact.
1 Save Stellar Jade For Special Passes
Honkai: Star Rail offers two types of Warp Passes: Standard and Special passes for Event-Warp banners. While both require the same amount of Stellar Jade to redeem, they can also be obtained through other means. Although it may seem tempting to invest in the Standard Banner and receive a free character after 300 pulls, it's not a wise long-term investment due to Stellar Jade being a limited resource. Instead, it's more worthwhile to invest in characters that are only available for a limited time until their next duration.
Additionally, all 5-star standard banner characters and light cones are available within their respective banner pools on their respective Event-Warp types, so players may end up obtaining all the standard characters without even needing to use the Standard Banner.
Honkai: Star Rail is currently in development for Android, iOS, and PC, with the game being expected to release on April 26.