Xianyun Guide
In-Depth Look into the Premium Plunge Support
Credits
Principal Authors
baeliph, orum, felic1an, itslin
Contributors
granien, poiiyo
Proofreading
coded, jenjenjl, never3nder, nickjr, nociii, homeless8666, shintenzu, sohan4543
And finally, thank you to the entire Xiao Mains community for their support.
Updated for Version 4.4
Introduction
Xianyun is a 5★ Anemo healer and Plunge Attack support. On top of being a consistent team-wide healer, Xianyun provides exceptionally powerful buffing capabilities to Xiao's Plunge Attacks while her Burst is active. By enhancing both Xiao's damage and quality of life, she has easily become one of his best teammates.
Xianyun Visual Guides
Is She Worth It?
Xianyun synergizes with Xiao due to her consistent team-wide heals and massive Plunge Attacks buffs. However, due to the nature of Flat DMG buffs, we primarily consider Xianyun a premium Support. That is to say, to maximize Xianyun's value in Xiao teams, players will be expected to have high-end investment for their whole team's builds.
Pros
Consistent team-wide healer that synergizes well with HP-draining mechanics like Furina.
Massive Flat DMG buffs via her Ascension 4 Passive.
Minor CRIT Rate buff via her Ascension 1 Passive.
No "Circle Impact." Her Elemental Burst follows the active character.
Provides 5 Anemo particles with her Elemental Skill, lowering ER requirements as a Triple Anemo flex slot.
Her signature weapon, Crane's Echoing Call, provides Plunge ATK DMG% for the team.
Cons
Xianyun's Ascension 4 Passive Buff has restrictions:
Only applies to a single-target per Plunge Attack. Thus, it scales less in multi-target scenarios.
Buff is limited to Xiao's initial 8 plunges, which does not fully utilize Furina and Xiao's ramping DMG%.
Requires higher personal ER% depending on her weapon and team, reducing potential ATK stats for her buff.
Requires high-end team-wide investment to maximize her value.
Talents
Talent Priority
Xianyun's buffing capabilities are granted entirely through her ascension passives, so her Talent Levels are generally less important.
We recommend leveling her Elemental Burst for the healing value. It is not necessary nor valuable to crown it.
We recommend only leveling her Elemental Skill out of personal preference. While her Elemental Skill's Level 3 Driftcloud Wave has good scaling, it is unlikely to ever be fully utilized in a Xiao team due to its long duration.
Her Normal Attack Talent is not worth investing into.
Elemental Skill
Xianyun enters the Cloud Transmogrification state and uses Skyladder once. In this state, her Plunging Attack will be converted into Driftcloud Wave. Each use of Skyladder while in this state increases the DMG and AoE of the next Driftcloud Wave used.
Particle Generation
Xianyun's Driftcloud Wave generates 5 Anemo Particles. It has no ICD when used outside of her Burst, so her C1 will generate 10 Anemo Particles total. She can prefunnel all 10 of these particles for her Burst.
Always use Driftcloud Wave before her Elemental Burst. Otherwise, Xianyun's own Plunge Attack will use up one of her Adeptal Assistance stacks. For this reason, she cannot prefunnel her Skill's particles to Xiao. Thus, rotations will generally have her using EPQ.
Elemental Burst
Deals AoE Anemo DMG and heals all nearby characters based on Xianyun's ATK. It will also summon the "Starwicker" mechanism.
Starwicker
Continuously follows the active character and periodically heals all nearby characters based on Xianyun's ATK.
Starts with 8 stacks of Adeptal Assistance. While Adeptal Assistance is active, nearby active characters will have their jump height increased.
When the active character completes a Plunging Attack, Starwicker will consume 1 stack of Adeptal Assistance and deal AoE Anemo DMG.
Healing
Xianyun's Elemental Burst heals the entire party. It consists of an initial burst of healing and then smaller heals every 2.5s for the rest of her Burst, for a total of 6 procs. Her healing is more than enough to maintain the entire team's HP, even with Xiao and Furina's combined HP drain. See Fanfare stacks here.
Between Xianyun's consistent team-wide healing during Xiao's entire Burst and the fact Starwicker follows the active character, her Burst provides nice quality of life.
Ascension 1 Passive
Xianyun grants a Plunging Attack CRIT Rate buff to all party members after hitting an enemy with a Plunge enhanced by her Elemental Skill. For 1/2/3/4 enemies hit, characters will receive 4%/6%/8%/10% Plunging Attack CRIT Rate.
Xianyun's Driftcloud Wave auto-targets the closest enemy to her when Plunging. Thus, it can be difficult to optimize its placement to hit multiple enemies at once, depending on their position.
Ascension 4 Passive
When the Starwicker created by Stars Gather at Dusk has Adeptal Assistance stacks, nearby active characters' Plunging Attack shockwave DMG will be increased by 200% of Xianyun's ATK. The maximum DMG increase that can be achieved this way is 9000.
Each Plunging Attack shockwave DMG instance can only apply this increased DMG effect to a single opponent. Each character can trigger this effect once every 0.4s.
Flat DMG
Flat DMG is additive to characters' Base DMG (Total ATK multiplied by Talent Modifier). It directly scales off characters' CRIT and DMG% Multipliers to buff damage.
Because Xianyun's Flat DMG is additive to ATK increases but multiplicative to CRIT and DMG% increases, Xianyun will generally favor builds that grant the latter two buffs.
Buff Maximizing
Xianyun's Buff maximizes at 4500 ATK. As such, weapons with high Base ATK and artifacts with ATK% substats will generally be favoured.
Note: Xianyun will require external ATK% buffs (e.g., from Elegy for the End or 4pc Tenacity of the Millelith) to reach her max ATK cap.
Constellations
Xianyun is not a Constellation dependent unit as her primary role is that of a healer and her main buffing capability is baked into her Ascension 4 Passive, which can provide up to 9000 Flat DMG on Plunging Attacks. Players may stop at C0 and still make nearly full usage of her kit.
C1. Purifying Wind
White Clouds at Dawn gains 1 additional charge.
Xianyun's C1 provides an extra charge of her Elemental Skill. This can lower ER requirements for herself, Xiao, and any other Anemo characters in the team.
In particular, this Constellation is useful in non-C6 Faruzan teams to alleviate energy needs. It may also prove useful in the Spiral Abyss to battery Xiao at the start of the chamber if the team does not have their Bursts up.
Otherwise, it is a small damage increase.
C2. Aloof from the World
After using a Skyladder from White Clouds at Dawn, Xianyun's ATK will be increased by 20% for 15s.
Additionally, the effects of the Passive Talent "Consider, the Adeptus in Her Realm" will be enhanced: When the Starwicker created by Stars Gather at Dusk has Adeptal Assistance stacks, nearby active characters' Plunging Attack shockwave DMG will be increased by 400% of Xianyun's ATK. The maximum DMG increase that can be achieved this way is 18000.
Xianyun's C2 grants her 20% ATK after using her Elemental Skill, allowing her to reach the 4500 ATK cap easier.
However, this Constellation's main value lies in increasing her Ascension 4's Buff to 400% of her ATK, for a maximum buff of 18000 Flat DMG on Plunging Attacks. This massive amount of Flat DMG solidifies her position as Xiao's strongest buffer.
Xianyun's performance as a Xiao support caps at this point and further Constellations are not needed.
Build
Artifacts
Main Stats
Always prioritize ATK% main stats on all three pieces to maximize her A4 buff. Other main stats are unnecessary in building her.
Sub Stats
ER% (until requirement) > ATK% > ATK
Xianyun should prioritize having enough ER to consistently Burst (see ER Requirements section below). Otherwise, ATK% and Flat ATK subs are recommended to maximize her buff cap.
Artifact Sets
4pc Noblesse Oblige
Generally your go-to set for Xianyun, with 20% ATK for herself and your entire team for 10 seconds. The ATK% buff on Xiao will generally outperform any alternative artifact set effects.
2pc ATK / ATK
Can be the best option should you already have a 4pc Noblesse user on the team or lack a useable 4pc Noblesse set. It performs only slightly behind 4pc Noblesse, but falls behind further in AOE scenarios. This may not be an efficient combination with a 5★ weapon, if you overcap on her ATK.
4pc Song of Days Past
Generally performs slightly behind 2pc ATK/ATK in single-target, with even further reduced value in AOE scenarios as Xiao consumes its stacks faster.
4pc Viridescent Venerer
Exists as an option to buff off-field elemental DPS flex units. 4pc Noblesse is still more valuable to buff ATK on Xianyun and buff Xiao, who is going to take up the bulk of your team damage.
Xianyun is also unable to refresh the 4pc set effect while Xiao is on-field, which causes this option to decrease in value due to its short uptime.
Weapons
Xianyun's weapon choices are straight forward in a Xiao team, as you will generally be prioritizing her Ascension 4 Passive's Buff. The only caveat to this is if your Xianyun does not have enough ER substats to Burst every rotation, in which case you should use a weapon with an energy passive.
Crane's Echoing Call
Base ATK: 741 | ATK%: 16.5%
After the equipping character hits an opponent with a Plunging Attack, all nearby party members' Plunging Attacks deal 28% increased DMG for 20s. When nearby party members hit opponents with Plunging Attacks, they will restore 2.5 Energy to the equipping character. Energy can be restored this way every 0.7s.
Xianyun's Best-in-Slot and Signature Weapon.
Easiest path to maxing out her Ascension 4 buff, as it has both high Base ATK and an ATK% substat.
Energy refund passive removes the need for ER% substats.
The Plunge DMG Bonus it provides scales well with refinements.
Skyward Atlas
Base ATK: 674 | ATK%: 33.1%
Utilized only for maximizing ATK to cap Xianyun's Ascension 4 Buff.
Only recommended if Xianyun's ER requirements can be met through substats.
Memory of Dust
Base ATK: 608 | ATK%: 49.6%
Cashflow Supervision
Base ATK: 674 | CRIT Rate: 22.1%
ATK is increased by 16%.
Only recommended if they are unused in your inventory box and if Xianyun's ER requirements can be met through substats.
If Skyward Atlas isn't an option, these two serve as the next best stat sticks to maximize Xianyun's Ascension 4 buff.
Both of these weapons have negligible passives.
Memory of Dust's passive is limited by it's 8s uptime, and should not be relied on.
Cashflow Supervision's first passive buff of 16% ATK has value, but the rest of it serves no purpose.
R5 Oathsworn Eye
Base ATK: 565 | ATK%: 27.6%
Increases Energy Recharge by 48% for 10s after using an Elemental Skill.
Best F2P option for maximizing Xianyun's Ascension 4 Passive buff.
Decreases Xianyun's ER requirements. This is the best option should your Xianyun require additional ER beyond what your artifact substats can provide.
Damage-wise, at C0, TTDS has the slight damage advantage due to its strong buff. At C2, Oathsworn will surpass TTDS in single-target, but lose out in multi-target.
We suggest picking either Oathsworn or TTDS depending on whether you need more ER or more damage.
R5 Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers
Base ATK: 401 | HP%: 35.2%
When switching characters, the new character taking the field has their ATK increased by 48% for 10s. This effect can only occur once every 20s.
Despite its low Base ATK and useless substat, its strong passive permits it to perform similarly to other 4★ weapons.
Its value is increased in AOE scenarios, as it buffs Xiao's damage against all targets he damages.
Its value is decreased when Xianyun is C2, as it becomes higher priority to maximize her A4's flat DMG.
This weapon forces you to always ensure Xianyun is rotated right before Xiao. If you cannot or are unwilling to stay strict to rotations, we suggest using a different weapon.
Flowing Purity
Base ATK: 565 | ATK%: 27.6%
This weapon is only recommended if you do not own Oathsworn Eye. Flowing Purity's passive has a negligible effect.
Full Weapon Comparison
Note: This chart assumes Xianyun has enough ER through substats to Burst every rotation, so it provides a weapon comparison for damage only. Always prioritize having enough ER on her first and foremost.
Xiao and Xianyun
This section will cover how Xiao's build, ER requirements, and teams change with Xianyun. We will also cover their ER requirements under various team scenarios.
Xiao Build
VHA vs MH
The nature of Flat DMG rewards CRIT and DMG% buffs more than ATK buffs. As such, 4pc Marechaussee Hunter, which provides 36% CRIT Rate, can perform better than 4pc Vermillion Hereafter, which provides up to 66% ATK.
MH's edge on VHA is greater in single-target scenarios due to Xianyun's A4 buff being more impactful. 4pc VHA scales better in multi-target scenarios.
Overall, due to the difference being only a few %, players should ultimately choose the build that works best with their artifact substats.
Single-target with 100% Collision
Multi-target
Weapon Comparison
Due to Xianyun's Flat DMG Bonus rewarding CRIT and DMG Bonus, Xiao's weapons will have a relative shift in performance. The tables below show Xiao's damage for a single rotation in a team with C6 Faruzan, Xianyun, and Furina.
Please see the spreadsheet linked below for full weapon comparisons at different Xianyun and Furina constellations.
ER Requirements
Xianyun as a Battery
Xianyun does not function well as a battery as she will generally funnel her particles to herself for two reasons:
Using her Skill-Plunge after her Burst will consume an Adeptal Assistance stack.
Her own ER requirements (without Crane's Echoing Call or C1) are relatively high.
As such, Xiao teams with C0 Xianyun will generally require a dedicated third Anemo to act as a battery.
Battery Options
C6 Faruzan is by far the best option, as she provides an abundance of Anemo particles on top of her enormous buffs.
C2 Faruzan with Favonius Bow can also function as a battery, but requires additional caveats to keep team-wide ER requirements manageable:
The fourth flex slot in the team should be an energy-rich support (i.e., Furina, Fischl, Yelan).
Faruzan only generates particles with a fully Charged Shot after using her Elemental Skill. She can funnel an additional set of particles through her Charged Shot after Xiao's Burst.
Xiao can use a Skill right after his Burst and funnel its particles to himself. Due to the additional time to funnel particles to Xiao, both his Skills should be available again when he returns on-field.
While performing either of the latter two points does extend rotation length, it allows Xiao-Xianyun teams to utilize C2 Faruzan with powerful non-Anemo buffers (e.g., Furina, Bennett) as the team's flex slots while still maintaining comfortable ER requirements.
Example Rotation w/ Non-C6 Faruzan
If Faruzan is not at least C2 or unavailable, other options include:
C1 Sucrose: energy-rich battery that allows for low ER needs, but provides little additional buff and damage value.
Lynette (C4/Sacrificial Sword): requires additional Xiao skill.
Jean (Favonius Sword): requires additional Xiao skill.
Finally, if running a team without an Anemo battery, both the third and fourth flex slots in the team must be energy-rich, e.g., Yelan and Furina.
Xianyun ER Requirements
Xianyun's ER requirements can vary widely depending on team composition. Her general ER thresholds are:
C6 Faruzan / C1 Sucrose: 130 - 150% ER
C2 Faruzan / Other Anemo: 150 - 170% ER*
Xiao & Xianyun Only: 180%+ ER*
* These ER recommendations assume an extra Xiao skill is funneled.
Xianyun's signature catalyst, Crane's Echoing Call, drastically reduces Xianyun's energy needs in a Xiao team. In a 12HP Xiao rotation, it refunds Xianyun energy 13 times, for a total of 32.5 flat energy. Thus, with R1, she will need 0 additional ER.
C0 Xianyun ER (TTDS)
Xiao ER Requirements
The general ER thresholds for a C0 Xiao are:
C6 Faruzan / C1 Sucrose: 110 - 130% ER
C2 Faruzan / Other Anemo: 120 - 140% ER*
Xiao & Xianyun Only: 140%+ ER*
* These ER recommendations assume an extra Xiao skill is funneled.
C0 Xiao ER (with C0 Xianyun)
ER Requirements with C1 Xianyun
With C1, Xianyun is able to Skill-Plunge twice per rotation, reducing the team's overall ER requirements and allowing for more flexible team building. This Constellation is particularly useful in non-C6 Faruzan teams to alleviate energy needs.
When using her C1, Xianyun can funnel both set of particles to herself via EPEPQ. If Xiao needs the particles more, Xianyun can optionally funnel one set of her particles to him after his Burst at the expense of a slightly longer rotation.
The following tables show how her C1 lowers both her own and Xiao's ER thresholds, assuming that she funnels one of her Skills to Xiao. With C1 Xianyun, C2-C5 Faruzan teams do not need to use an extra Xiao Skill.
C1 Xianyun ER (TTDS)
C0 Xiao ER (with C1 Xianyun)
Team Building
Building Around ER
Due to the aforementioned suboptimality of Xianyun as a battery for Xiao, Xiao-Xianyun teams require an additional battery who can provide ample amounts of energy for them both. Thus, their teammates will generally consist of a battery character and a buffer character.
Battery Characters:
Faruzan (C6)
Faruzan (C2+)*
Sucrose (C1)
Lynette (C4 / Sacrificial Sword)*
Jean (Favonius Sword)*
*Requires additional Xiao Skill.
Buffer Characters:
Faruzan (C2+)
Furina
Bennett
Yelan
Zhongli
Example: Final Fantasy 20 (FFXX)
This is THE ultimate end-game Xiao team to maximize both his own and the entire team's damage. This team has great synergy on multiple fronts:
Xianyun's team-wide healing synergizes well with Furina's HP-draining mechanics, allowing her to consistently stack Fanfare while keeping the team healthy.
C6 Faruzan, on top of her usual massive buffs for Xiao's damage, provides an abundance of Anemo particles that lower Xiao and Xianyun's ER requirements.
Xianyun's Flat DMG buff will scale with the massive amount of DMG Bonus% (Xiao Burst, Furina Burst, Faruzan Burst) and CRIT DMG (C6 Faruzan) provided in this team.
Eliminates all "Circle Impact" due to Furina and Xianyun's buffs following the active character and Faruzan's wide-range Burst.
Considerations
To maximize the efficacy of this team, heavy investment is required on party members' builds and/or Constellations. Notably, C6 Faruzan helps immensely with energy management.
Furina and Xianyun Constellations are not required to play this team. However, this team's performance does scale very well with their Constellations (notably their C2s) and signature weapon refinements.
Rotations
C6 Faruzan: Faruzan Q > Furina EQ > Xianyun EPQ > Xiao EE Q
Non-C6 Faruzan: Faruzan EQ > Furina EQ > Xianyun EPQ > Faruzan CA > Xiao EE Q E
Team Comparisons
Xianyun provides a significant DPS increase for Xiao teams at high-end investment, especially in single target scenarios and Furina-based teams.
Notable exceptions to this team comparison are:
C4 Jean will generally perform better than Xianyun against enemies with high Anemo RES.
Non-C6 Faruzan teams will need higher ER requirements on Xiao and Xianyun, lowering their damage potential.
Single-target with 50% Collision
Multi-target
FAQ
Is R1 Crane's Echoing Call or C2 Xianyun more valuable?
Are Xianyun or Furina Constellations more valuable?
Is Xianyun good in multi-target scenarios?
How is Xianyun for HP draining mechanics like Furina's Fanfare stacking?
Is cutting rotations short to 8 Plunges worth it?
Since Xianyun only buffs 8 Plunges, would it be worth it to do 8 RAKE?
Is Xianyun still valuable for C6 Xiao?
How do I optimize my Xiao build with Xianyun buffs?
Q: Is R1 Crane's Echoing Call or C2 Xianyun more valuable?
From a team damage perspective, C2 Xianyun is more valuable than her R1, as even running her at C2 with other weapon options perform better than C0 Xianyun with her signature weapon. However, pulling for her C2 requires more pulls on average to obtain as opposed to her R1 weapon.
R1 Crane alleviates some of her ER requirements, though it is relatively niche as only Xianyun can currently utilize it.
We suggest prioritizing her C2 before going for her weapon, especially if you already own Skyward Atlas.
Q: Are Xianyun or Furina Constellations more valuable?
If you have the choice between Xianyun and Furina Constellations, Xianyun C2 performs slightly better than Furina C2 for Xiao teams. Note that Furina's C2 is generally more valuable outside of Xiao teams.
Q: Is Xianyun good in multi-target scenarios?
Yes, even though her buffs only affect a single enemy, they still contribute to increasing the overall team's damage. In Xiao's most optimal team (Xiao-Xianyun-Furina-Faruzan, or FFXX), replacing Xianyun with any other teammate results in less damage.
For a more in-depth comparison, refer to the Team Comparisons section above.
Q: Is Xianyun good without Furina?
While Xianyun performs best with Furina, even without Furina she is a powerful buffing option that Xiao takes great advantage of due to his innate damage bonus.
She also offers great quality of life, being an Anemo Healer whose Elemental Burst follows Xiao and frees him from circular healing/buffing abilities that impede movement or force the player to abandon said ability to reach enemies.
Q: How is Xianyun for HP draining mechanics like Furina's Fanfare stacking?
Xianyun's consistent team-wide heals are strong enough to keep the entire team at healthy HP levels for the entire rotation and for multiple rotations. This is not the case for Bennett and Jean, who leave the team at 50–70% HP after the first rotation.
Xianyun also stacks Furina's Fanfare quickly. While slightly slower than Jean when the team starts at 50% HP due to Jean's large heal Burst, her Fanfare stacking is the most consistent while also keeping the entire team healthy.
Q: Is cutting rotations short to 8 Plunges worth it?
Since Xianyun only buffs 8 Plunges, players may opt to cut rotations to the 9th (earliest plunge for Faruzan's burst to end cooldown).
However cutting rotations short, while being good for frontloading the team's DPS, raises ER requirements for the team by a significant margin due to no funnelling and losing out on Furina and Faruzan's particle generation. Cutting rotations decrease considerably in value after factoring in ER needs.
Q: Since Xianyun only buffs 8 Plunges, would it be worth it to do 8 RAKE?
Since Xianyun only buffs 8 Plunges, players may consider doing 8 RAKE Combos (N1CJP, JET).
However, because of Faruzan, Furina and Xianyun's Elemental Burst durations, the 8th N1CJP will not get fully buffed, and all of the aforementioned Bursts are wasted in this rotation. Therefore, it is not recommended to spam N1CJP.
Q: Is Xianyun still valuable for C6 Xiao?
Xianyun is still a valuable support for C6 Xiao.
While C6 Xiao plunges fewer times on average than C0 Xiao in multi-target scenarios, Plunges are still a significant part of C6 Xiao's damage profile. C6 Xiao can plunge up to 8 times per rotation, so all of his Plunges can capitalize on Xianyun's Flat DMG buff.
Xianyun's A4 passive aside, she provides other notable sources of quality of life:
Removes "Circle Impact" restrictions, which synergizes well with C6 Xiao's mobile playstyle.
Stacks Furina's Fanfare consistently while keeping the entire team's HP levels healthy.
And of course, in single-target scenarios where C6 Xiao is inactive, Xianyun remains the best Plunge Attack buffer in the game.
Q: How do I optimize my Xiao build with Xianyun buffs?
Please check out the Xiao Optimizer config sheet by poiiyo.