Plus, Xiao is a great pull if you don’t need another highly contested support team.
Otherwise, he’s not worth your time.
He’s still a powerful DPS unit, but there are other units that are even more powerful.
Xiao is a powerful being, but he is not unbeatable. He can be defeated if he is unprepared or if the opponent has better skills.
Pros & Cons
Xiao Strengths
Xiao is an especially effective unit against AoE attacks.
His plunge attacks can hit multiple enemies at once, making them easy to take down. This is especially useful in battle events where multiple mobs appear at once.
Xiao is a powerful single-target fighter who can take down larger opponents. ..
Xiao can deal an additional instance of damage by hitting the opponent mid-air before hitting the ground.
Damage from collisions can increase a player’s DPS by up to 40%. ..
Xiao’s best artifact build often depends on their substats.
- The Unforgiving Blade
- The Merciless Blade
- The Unyielding Axe
He does have a best-in-slot set (4pc. Vermillion Hereafter), but it’s only 8% better than the next best option. This is still a decent upgrade if your Vermillion pieces are as good as your current ATK/VV ones.
If you don’t have a 4pc. Vermillion set to catch up with your stronger artifacts, it can easily take weeks for your new set to catch up.
Gladiator’s Finale can be obtained from multiple sources like boss drops, artifact strongboxes, and trounce domains.
The Gladiator pieces are likely already good, but you can improve them by using the right techniques.
Similarly, the Reminiscence of Shimenawa is the most resin-efficient tool in-game. So you’ll likely get good Shimenawa pieces while farming for Emblem of Severed Fate.
This means that you can use good pieces that you already have to make more resin-efficiently.
Vermillion is only worth farming if you don’t have any good 2pc. ATK pieces or just want to max out Xiao’s damage potential. ..
Xiao has access to a more niche build with the 4pc. Viridescent Venerer (4VV) set. This build is designed to deal high damage and have a high chance of critical hits.
Xiao is a valuable member of any team, and can provide support for his teammates by playing a supportive role. ..
The NaXiaonal team is one of the most popular for this build. They are composed of Xiao, Xiangling, Bennett, and Sucrose.
Xiao is the team’s primary DPS and he is also very important in terms of providing support for his teammates. His ability to quickly and effectively deal damage makes him a valuable asset on the team.
Xiao doesn’t have any dedicated supports, so there are no specific ways to draft his team.
He needs a battery and a shielder/healer to function.
His teams have an extra slot that can fit most off-field DPS units or additional supports.
- A player who can create chances for others and score goals himself.
- A player who is defensively sound and can help keep the opposition from scoring.
- A player who is strong in the air and can score goals from set pieces.
- A player with good passing skills, who can help move the ball forward quickly. ..
In Xiao’s gameplay, you play as a small character that moves around the screen. The goal is to collect as many coins as possible, and avoid obstacles.
spam your abilities until his burst duration ends, then charge your burst and cast your teammates’ abilities again.
He’s a very difficult player to play ‘wrong’.
He still has potential to improve his damage and gameplay with techniques that further improve his damage.
This guide includes tips on how to play Xiao, including how to create powerful combos and how to position yourself for the best results.
Xiao Weaknesses
Xiao dislikes fighting single enemies with smaller hitboxes, preferring to take down groups of foes. ..
He has the benefit of collision damage, but this is very inconsistent against opponents with smaller hitboxes.
Xiao mainly excels in AoE damage, so he does not have much damage in single-target.
Since he often uses heavy attacks, opponents like Geovishaps can be easily knocked back. ..
Xiao and her opponents are pushed away from each other by the strategy. This can be frustrating for the opponents and lead to a DPS loss. ..
Xiao needs a lot of energy to recharge – it’s at around 160% ER even with a battery. ..
Since his burst is his main source of damage, reaching this threshold is very important. No burst would just mean dealing no damage.
The battery and funneling energy particles are both important in this invention.
A battery is a unit that generates energy particles that help charge Xiao’s burst. This is done by funneling the generated particles to Xiao.
Xiao has a notably lower number of supports than most DPS units.
This allows him to free up more slots in his team, but also puts him behind other units. ..
Xiangling is a powerful Pyro DPS that has multiple synergistic supports and teammates. This effectively lets her build incredibly strong teams that significantly boost her damage.
Xiao has teammates that are often just viable, in contrast to other teams who often rely on a few stars. ..
He has very few buffs that provide significant damage or resistance, and no buffs that provide significant damage or resistance.
Xiao has fewer free-to-play weapon options than other DPS units. ..
Xiao is a strong 4-star DPS character, but the only polearms that work well with him are those with high damage output. ..
Lithic Spear is a limited weapon that can only be obtained through the weapon banner. It’s unlikely for players to have this weapon. Deathmatch is paywalled behind the Battlepass – it’s inaccessible to F2P players. Blackcliff Pole can be bought in the Straglitter Exchange shop. It’s a good weapon but slightly expensive in cost.
Are Xiao’s Constellations Good?
Xiao’s constellations are not as impressive as other 5-star units. ..
If you still want to pull for his cons, C1 is the best place to stop. It gives an extra charge to Xiao’s skill. This is mainly a quality-of-life constellation that also slightly buffs his damage.
Don’t pull for your C2-C5. They’re all very minimal quality-of-life and damage buffs. ..
The constellation C6 is Xiao’s only other notable constellation besides C1. Xiao’s C6 can double his total DPS against certain content.
This means that either you pull for C1 or go all out until his C6.
Xiao’s constellations are a unique and beautiful way to show your love for the night sky. ..
C1: Dissolution Eon: Destroyer of Worlds
Increases the skill charges of your weapon by 1.
The quality-of-life constellation slightly decreases his Energy Recharge requirements.
C1 is a highly recommended place to stop pulling for constellations.
C2: Annihilation Eon: Blossom of Kaeidos
When in the party and off-field, his energy recharge rate is increased by 25%. ..
Xiao spends a significant amount of time in the field, so this effect will rarely be active. And even with C2, staying on-field to catch energy particles is always optimal for Xiao.
C2 is a waste of time. ..
C3: Conqueror of Evil: Wrath Deity
Increases his elemental skill talent level by 3.
Xiao’s burst damage is more significant than his skill damage. C3 is still a damage gain, but it’s not as significant as other abilities. ..
It’s not recommended to pull for C3 alone, but it’s possible.
C4: Transcension: Extinction of Suffering
When Xiao’s HP falls below 50%, he gains a 100% Defense bonus. ..
Xiao doesn’t benefit from DEF bonuses at all, and his teammates already provide him with a shielder/healer that increases his survivability. ..
Jean’s healers help him stay alive and healthy, even when he’s at low health.
C5: Evolution Eon: Origin of Ignorance
Increases his elemental burst talent level by 3.
This damage gain is not remarkable. His main multipliers come from his normal attack talent, not from his burst.
C5 increases the damage bonus from his burst and not his actual plunge multipliers.
C6: Conqueror of Evil: Guardian Yaksha
Xiao’s burst can hit two opponents with his plunging attacks and grant him 1 skill charge. And for the next 1s, he can use his skill while ignoring its cooldown.
C6 is a new player who completely changes his playstyle against two or more opponents.
Instead of spamming his elemental skill, he would only spam it when its charges run out. At most, he can effectively chain 3 skill casts between plunges. ..
This damage increase against ideal scenarios can more than double Xiao’s total DPS.
The new update to the game makes Darth Vader’s C3 a better constellation. ..
This is a strong constellation, but it’s relatively weaker than most DPS units.
- A single target: The Xiao can easily kill a single target with its powerful attacks, but is less effective against multiple targets.
- A few targets: The Xiao can easily kill a few targets with its powerful attacks, but is less effective against many targets. 3+ Targets: The Xiao becomes much more powerful against one or more targets, and is almost impossible to avoid.
Deathmatch vs. Blackcliff Pole for Xiao
Deathmatch slightly outperforms Blackcliff Pole in terms of passive performance. However, when it comes to more situational content, such as when you can easily get three Blackcliff stacks, Blackcliff Pole can outperform Deathmatch by a small margin. ..
If one target has lower HP or dies faster, Xiao is left with only one target. He won’t be able to trigger C6’s effect.
Plus, performing a plunging attack can push lighter opponents away from Xiao and each other – thus making it harder to maximize his skill damage.
Despite being interchangeable, the two artifacts mentioned are generally better suited to different stats. The best option would be to use which one you have or have better stats for.
Deathmatch gives you a lot of CRIT rate, while Blackcliff Pole offers more CRIT damage.
