A strong HSR Hyslins build demands high investment in several stats to max out the 5-star Nihility character’s special talents. However, you can certainly have Hysilens leave her mark without reaching her peak potential – and without Kafka as a teammate, despite what the general consensus says. It just takes a bit of creative building to work.
Below, we break down the best Honkai Star Rail Hysilens build, including Hysilens’ Light Cone and Relic options, ideal stats, and Hysilens’ best teams.
HSR Hysilens build
Hysilens Light Cone
Hysilens has a decent range of Nihility Light Cones to choose from outside of her signature, though her signature is still a strong pick. It’s called Why Does the Ocean Sing, and it increases the wearer’s effect hit rate by 40 percent right out of the box, so to speak. When the wearer inflicts a debuff, they have an 80 percent chance of also inflicting the Enthrallment status for three turns. While Enthrallment lasts, every debuff the wearer inflicts on the target increases the DOT damage they receive by five percent, an effect that stacks up to six times, and when an ally attacks that target, the wearer gets a 10 percent speed buff for three turns.
Jiaoqiu’s Those Many Springs is an excellent second choice, if you have it. It increases the wearer’s effect hit rate by 60 percent and has a high chance of inflicting the unarmored status for two turns, which makes the enemy take 10 percent more damage while the status lasts. If the target is suffering from a DOT, unarmored becomes cornered, which increases damage taken by 14 percent.
There’s also Black Swan’s Reforged Remembrance. This one raises the wearer’s effect hit rate by 40 percent, and when they attack an enemy suffering from a DOT, they gain a stack of Prophet. They can hold one for each DOT type, and every stack increases attack by five percent while letting DOTs ignore 7.2 percent of an enemy’s defense.
Kafka’s signature, Patience is All You Need, also works well for Hysilens, though if you want to activate Hysilens’ third major trace, you’ll have to rely on exceptionally good Relic rolls to hit the 120 percent effect hit rate stat. Patience increases damage dealt by 24 percent and buffs speed by 4.8 percent up to three times after the wearer attacks. It also inflicts the Erode effect, which causes enemies to take shock damage and helps contribute to the damage Hysilens deals with her zone. You’re just missing out on bonus effect hit rate for it.
Welt’s In the Name of the World is, surprisingly, a solid choice for Hysilens if you have it, though I wouldn’t recommend going out of your way to get it if you have or can get any of the 4-star options. Debuffed enemies take 24 percent more damage from the wearer, the effect hit rate of their skill goes up by 18 percent, and their attack increases by 24 percent. The downside is that Hysilens needs overall effect hit rate – not just EHR for one move. Still, if you’ve got it and are working toward building up a different option, it’s not the worst choice.
Hysilens 4-star Light Cones
Hysilens can use several 4-star Nihility Light Cones as well, including Eyes of the Prey. This one’s simple, but effective: It increases effect hit rate by 20/40 percent and bumps DOT damage up by 24/48 percent. Before the Tutorial Mission Starts, which you can get for free at Herta’s store using currency earned from the Simulated and Divergent Universes, raises effect hit rate by 20/40 percent and restores energy when the wearer attacks an enemy with reduced defense. Hysilens regularly reduces enemy defense, and her ultimate is one of her most powerful abilities, so this is a useful set of buffs to have.
There’s also It’s Showtime, another 4-star Light Cone, one you can get from the Forgotten Hall’s store. It increases the wearer’s damage by six/10 percent when the wearer inflicts a debuff, and the effect stacks three times. If the wearer’s effect hit rate is over 80 percent, their attack increases by 20/36 percent as well.
Hysilens Relics
Until HoYoverse adds another DOT set, Prisoner in Deep Confinement is Hysilens’ best choice.
- Two-piece effect: Increases attack by 12 percent
- Four-piece effect: For every DOT the enemy is under, the wearer ignores six percent of their defense, which stacks three times
Hysilens Ornaments
Likewise, the DOT ornament set Revelry by the Sea is the best choice for Hysilens, since it’s the only one that does anything for damage over time. It does require high investment in the wearer’s attack, though.
- Increases the wearer’s attack by 12 percent. When their attack is 2,400/3,600, their DOT damage increases by 12/24 percent
Hysilens also benefits from speed, though, and if you build enough of it on her, you could opt for the Firmament Frontline Glamoth set.
- Increases the wearer’s attack by 12 percent. When their speed is equal to or higher than 135/160, they deal 12/18 percent more damage
Hysilens stats
Hysilens’ stat needs vary depending on which Light Cones and Relics you’re using, but in general, building her is like building Kafka and Black Swan. She needs at least 60 effect hit rate to have a steady chance of applying her DOTs and debuffs on most enemies and high attack so those DOTs eat away at their targets. Her third major passive trace increases damage dealt by up to 90 percent, for every 10 percent of Hysilens’ effect hit rate that exceeds 60. That works out to needing 120 percent effect hit rate, which you’ll need to either get very good stat rolls to hit or use a Light Cone that has effect hit rate as a buff.
Just bear in mind that you’ll still get a damage buff under 120 percent EHR – just not as much.
If you’re using the Revelry by the Sea Ornament set, Hysilens needs 3,600 attack, which is a lot and likely will prevent you from getting speed boots and possibly energy regeneration on your rope. You’d also need to opt for a Light Cone with effect hit rate, since Relic stats would be devoted to attack. A 24 percent damage buff for DOTs isn’t something to sneeze at, though, so it is worth the hassle.
Here’s what that all boils down to:
- Body: Effect hit rate if you’re using a non-EHR Light Cone; attack if not
- Feet: Attack
- Sphere: Attack
- Rope: Energy regeneration, unless you need more attack
Hysilens teams
Hysilens functions as a defense shredder and a DOT damage dealer, but her primary role is as the latter. When her ultimate is active, she can deal extra damage for every DOT applied on an enemy, and her second passive trace causes her to instantly trigger existing DOTs for 150 percent of their damage value, a bit like Kafka’s skill, but more powerful.
In other words, Hysilens does well on teams with at least one other character who can apply DOT effects or, barring that, on a team with a fast ally who can regularly activate her talent, which applies one DOT when an ally attacks.
An ideal DOT team would be something like:
- Hysilens
- Kafka
- Black Swan
- Sustain
Black Swan’s Arcana counts as wind shear, Kafka frequently applies shock, and Kafka and Hysilens will alternate between detonating DOTs. Black Swan also reduces enemy defense, so Kafka and Hysilens will be dealing quite a lot of damage overall.
However, you can run Hysilens with just one additional DOT character, too. Your non-Kafka alternatives are:
The issue with Luka is that he’s single-target only, where Guinaifen and Sampo can apply their debuffs to multiple enemies at once.
Running this setup gives you room to include a support character, though you’ll want to avoid supports like the Remembrance Trailblazer who only buff crit damage. Hysilens doesn’t need that. She benefits from attack, speed, or damage buffs, which makes these characters good choices:
- Robin (who can also provide extra turns for applying and detonating DOTs)
- Bronya (for action advance and damage buffs)
- Sunday (for the same things)
- Ruan Mei (damage buffs and all-type RES pen)
- Tribbie (all-type RES pen)
If you go with Bronya or Sunday, just make sure their speed is lower than Hysilens’. That way, she acts, then they act and can let her move again.
Finally, since Hysilens and her teams are skill-point hungry, your best choice for a sustain unit is one who can get by without using skill points. Some options are:
What about Hysilens and Acheron?
Hysilens helps Acheron meet the latter’s “two additional Nihility characters” team requirement, though in this role, Hysilens’ own damage is reduced in favor of lowering enemy defense for Acheron. It works, but it’s not the best use for Hysilens unless you have no other Nihility units to help support Acheron. Jiaoqiu, Pela, Black Swan, Silver Wolf, Cipher, and even Welt or Fugue can fit into Acheron teams without sacrificing their own utility. Hysilens, while capable of inflicting DOT effects on her own and when allies attack, gets the most out of teammates who can stack their own DOTs as well.
Head over to our Star Rail codes page for some freebies to help with your next pulls, whether you’re after Hysilens or saving for a future banner.