The 7 best Honkai: Star Rail characters of 2023 for each of the Paths

We are almost at the end of 2023 and even if Honkai: Star Rail has only been out for eight months, it's worth looking back on the game's hugely successful launch year.

As a gacha game, Honkai: Star Rail lives and dies on its characters — from their characterisation, design, to their gameplay. The game will end the year with 40 playable characters as of the first half of version 1.6, so let's take a look at which characters have shined the most for each of the game's seven Paths:

Hunt: Seele

As the game's first-ever limited 5-star character, Seele had to make a good impression to get players hooked, and by Akivili did she deliver. With her ability to quickly take down single targets and get an extra turn to eliminate another, Seele was a top-tier character at release and remains so to this day.

What really helped Seele excel from the get-go was how easy it was to build a very strong team around her at launch. If you had Bronya fittingly alongside her, then you know how good it feels to never give your enemies any turns. She also makes perfect use of the Genius of Brilliant Stars relic set, by far the best Cavern of Corrosion relic set in the game.

And with all that said, Seele is bound to get even more powerful. If you already have a Quantum sustain like Fu Xuan or Lynx, then you just need to wait for the 5-star Quantum Harmony character Sparkle to be released in version 2.0 in February next year to complete the long-awaited mono-Quantum lineup.

Honourable mention: Topaz

Erudition: Jing Yuan

After Seele, Jing Yuan became the game's second limited 5-star character in the second half of version 1.0. But unlike Seele, Jing Yuan had a bit of a slow start as players did not get to see him with his full potential from the get-go.

Don't get me wrong, Jing Yuan and his fearsome Lightning-Lord were already strong enough to take on whatever the game threw at them at release. But with the release of Topaz in version 1.4 and the Ashblazing Grand Duke relic set in version 1.6, Jing Yuan mains finally got to see how good the Arbiter-General could be once he had both a character and a relic set that could buff the follow-up attacks from his Lightning-Lord.

In addition, Jing Yuan is one of the best picks for both current and upcoming content. The Forgotten Hall's Memory of Chaos and Pure Fiction as well as the Simulated Universe's Swarm Disaster and Gold and Gears all feature big waves of enemies. Jing Yuan saw his stock rise as 2023 progressed, and we expect him to look even better next year.

Honourable mention: Argenti

Destruction: Jingliu

The Destruction Path is honestly the most stacked Path in Honkai: Star Rail, featuring hard-hitting limited 5-stars like Dan Heng Imbibitor Lunae and Blade as well as an excellent standard 5-star in Clara and even a strong 4-star in Xueyi.

But if we had to pick someone who stood above the rest in this excellent class, then it had to be Jingliu. She can clear the field with a whirlwind of Ice attacks at the cost of her allies' health — a price well worth paying when you look at Jingliu's absolutely insane damage output.

Characters on the Destruction Path all have drawbacks to balance their powerful kits, with Imbibitor Lunae needing to devour skill points while Blade and Clara need enemies to focus their attacks on them. By comparison, Jingliu draining the health of her allies is barely a caveat if you play your cards right. And if you do, then it's hard to think of any foe that can stand in your way.

Honourable mentions: Dan Heng Imbibitor Lunae, Blade, Clara

Harmony: Ruan Mei

To be honest, we had this spot pencilled in for Bronya before the release of version 1.6. After all, it's hard to top DMG and Crit buffs as well as action advance from a standard 5-star character. But then Ruan Mei was released as a late Christmas gift and we were simply blown away.

As Honkai: Star Rail's first-ever limited 5-star Harmony character, Ruan Mei boasts an insane kit that makes her more than worthy of her rarity. She buffs her allies' DMG, Weakness Break Efficiency, Speed, and more! Not to mention, her teamwide DMG buffs rivals that of Bronya's (which is limited to just one ally) and she can deal a ton of damage on her own with her Break Effect scaling.

If you talk to hardcore players, they would argue that strong support characters are more valuable pulls then damage-dealers. If you have the right support in your party, then they can lead you to victory regardless of whether your damage-dealer is a 5-star or a 4-star. Ruan Mei fits the bill. She may have only come out days ago, but we're sure she will be dominating the metagame for years to come.

Honourable mentions: Bronya, Tingyun, Asta

Nihility: Kafka

Let's have a show of hands, who here was enticed to play Honkai: Star Rail when they saw Kafka in the first few trailers? To tell the truth, I know so MANY people who got into the game because of her and have been hooked ever since.

It's hard to argue that Kafka was the most-hyped character in Honkai: Star Rail and it's even harder to argue that she exceeded all expectations. Not only is she one of the most beautifully-designed characters in the game, Kafka's ability to enable damage-over-time teams makes her one of Honkai: Star Rail's strongest and most valuables characters too.

You also have to remember that Kafka was released before her best-in-slot relic sets in version 1.5 and is still waiting on Black Swan to release in version 2.0 before she gets a 5-star damage-over-time partner. Kafka is already one of the best characters in the game right now, but imagine how insane she will be once she gets her premium team. I know so MANY people who are chomping at the bit to get that dream Kafka team next year.

Honourable mentions: Silver Wolf, Pela

Abundance: Luocha

The role of a healer is often underrated. But if you're ever up against something like Difficulty V of the Swarm Disaster and you find your beefed up damage-dealers don't deal enough damage to outlast endgame bosses, then you will realise how important having a strong healer is.

And when it comes to healers in Honkai: Star Rail, none have been better than Luocha. When you have him on your team, you don't even worry about healing anymore as Luocha automatically heals any low health allies and keeps the entire party topped-up with his healing field. As a cherry on top, he can also remove buffs from enemies and generate skill points for the party since he rarely has to actually use his skill to heal.

Sure, you can get away with running other healers. But what sets Luocha apart is how he trivialises the role, letting you focus on maintaining your offensive. Luocha has been hands-down the best healer in Honkai: Star Rail since he released in version 1.1, and we expect him to retain his position for years to come.

Honourable mention: Huohuo

Preservation: Fu Xuan

Just like healers, tanks and shielders also often go unappreciated. I mean, if there's one thing better than healing whatever damage the enemy deals, then it has to be preventing them from dealing any damage at all. And while she technically doesn't prevent enemies from dealing damage, Fu Xuan makes any attacks on the party feel like a tickle.

Fu Xuan embodies the Path of Preservation to a T, able to sustain the entire party by herself, all while having some of the most gorgeous animations in the entire game. Not only that, she also prevents debuffs from affecting the party, does a bit of healing, and buffs their Crit Rate!

Even if Fu Xuan, Preservation Trailblazer, Gepard, and March 7th are the only four Preservation characters in the game so far, it's hard to imagine the next few ones taking the top spot away from the Master Diviner. I mean, who wouldn't want to be under the protection of a cute magical girl like Fu Xuan?

Honourable mentions: Gepard, March 7th

Honkai: Star Rail version 1.6 features three new characters, namely the 5-star Ice Harmony character Ruan Mei, the 5-star Imaginary Hunt character Dr. Ratio, and the 4-star Quantum Destruction character Xueyi. Dr. Ratio will be given to players for free at the start of the second half of this version.

After version 1.6 comes the massive version 2.0 update in February 2024, which will see the release of a new planet in Penacony as well as three new characters in Black Swan, Sparkle, and Misha.

Yan Ku is a full-time dog parent, part-time (gacha) gamer, and part-time writer.

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