Honkai: Star Rail - General Discussion

[Dead Weight]

To mirror the Genshin Impact - General Discussion thread, here's a central thread to discuss the game ( Upcoming content, characters, builds, gacha pulls, etc.)

[JusttJD]

Oh Boy...

I can already feel my wallet getting thinner...

[HelixNebula_x]

I got Clara on literally my first wish on the Departure Banner, so I guess I'm Mr Svarog now.

 

 

Game seems great so far, only put about 10 hours in, but looking forward to getting back into it tonight. I need to decide on some early Cones to level though, because that's what's holding me back at the minute.

[LucilleRosethorn]

39 minutes ago, HelixNebula_x said:

I got Clara on literally my first wish on the Departure Banner, so I guess I'm Mr Svarog now.

 

 

Game seems great so far, only put about 10 hours in, but looking forward to getting back into it tonight. I need to decide on some early Cones to level though, because that's what's holding me back at the minute.

 

https://game8.co/games/Honkai-Star-Rail/archives/409604 & https://www.prydwen.gg/star-rail/tier-list/ tell you tier list but also by selecting the character it'll tell you what equipment is best for them and team builds

 

I'm trying to finish up the main missions as I don't have much left which will unlock all the extras I need to finish my characters. So many side quests but each one does teach you the lore and information which helps with the main story 

Edited October 13, 2023 by LucilleRosethorn

[tomhannay]

The game is great and I honestly can't believe how much better it looks on PS5 than on Android. The deluge of characters has been a bit much though, this is the fifth patch in a row with two new 5* characters, and from leaks that's going to continue for a while, even just going for four of the ten in five patches has brought my jade low.

 

Seele, Luocha, Kafka and Jingliu for limited 5*s, still no Bronya or Clara, but Welt E1, Gepard E1 and Yanqing for all my sins. That's taken me 534 passes, which makes me unluckier than 98% of players (based on Genshin maths, which applies here as well), so I'm doing my part.

[RoastedPeanut]

1 hour ago, LucilleRosethorn said:

 

https://game8.co/games/Honkai-Star-Rail/archives/409604 & https://www.prydwen.gg/star-rail/tier-list/ tell you tier list but also by selecting the character it'll tell you what equipment is best for them and team builds

 

I'm trying to finish up the main missions as I don't have much left which will unlock all the extras I need to finish my characters. So many side quests but each one does teach you the lore and information which helps with the main story 

Thanks for sharing that. I'm still getting my head around things and I managed to get Clara when I was checking out what banners are so this will be great to help me with my build. 

[JusttJD]

So, to everyone that also plays Genshin.

 

How does this one compares to Genshin?

 

[Zantarok]

2 hours ago, JusttJD said:

So, to everyone that also plays Genshin.

 

How does this one compares to Genshin?

 

To me it feels like Genshin with turn based RPG battles and it's quite fun. The music is great too, the battle themes always keep me engaged. All of the systems for getting jade and the pulls feel identical to Genshin and I'm fine with that as I felt it was always easy to navigate. I have read some things are streamlined or better quality of life like upgrading than Genshin too.  

[Milktastrophe]

On 10/13/2023 at 6:07 AM, JusttJD said:

So, to everyone that also plays Genshin.

 

How does this one compares to Genshin?

 

I've played about 5 hours of Star Rail and 300 hours of Genshin.

 

Star Rail is way better. There's a lot of similarities like how you upgrade characters and equipment. But the combat is a lot more fun. You get to actually use your whole party constantly in battle instead of just your main DPS for 95% of the time. The story and setting are a lot more interesting. There's no super annoying Paimon.

 

Also plenty of minor improvements like drops automatically getting picked up. (I haven't picked up any drops in Genshin since Inazuma, just too time consuming). You can use other player's characters in the stamina-gated content (as opposed to queueing forever to join games with someone in real time in Genshin), which both makes that content very easy if you want so you can upgrade your characters for the main game content, and let you try out characters outside of the trials.

 

The only downsides I've noticed are the budget is clearly much lower (which makes sense, isn't Genshin the most expensive to produce game of all time, plus Star Rail's scope of content is less). Genshin looks a lot better visually, Star Rail's graphics are fuzzy on PS5, looks like a PS3 game to be honest[/url]. And there's a lot of input lag after doing something. Like if you use a technique in the field, none of the other buttons like switching characters will respond for like 5-10 seconds.

Edited November 20, 2023 by Milktastrophe
Added a screenshot showing the poor graphics. Turns out they haven't fixed the issue and some areas still seem to be rendering super low resolution

[Katt]

Button settings are way annoying. Sometimes a cursor would be nice, like Destiny 2. I just pull out my phone to tweak equipments and then continue on PS5 for the sake of saving time.

[suffy_z]

3 hours ago, JusttJD said:

So, to everyone that also plays Genshin.

 

How does this one compares to Genshin?

 

Day 1 player for both Genshin and HSR. Sorry for wall of text in advance if even someone gonna bother with reading all of that

1. "Resin" is way better in HSR, there is no condensing. 240 cap in 24hours, also if you cant login everyday there is "reserve" which store some of it so you don't miss out too much
2. Every domain is accessible to farm anything all week. Ganyu books only on Tuesday, Friday and Sunday? Here Sunday is everyday
3. Close to no or straight up no farming materials. I would say 9 out of 10 times you will always have enough (in Genshin terms whooperflowers/slimes/whatever) for everything
4. Dailies are faster than Genshin even with recent changes, you can get such combination of dailies that you could complete them in less than 2 minutes
5. Optional autoplay, which you can use in almost everything combat related except iirc few story boss encounters
6. Way less exploration, woudnt be surprised if Mondstadt on its own have more exploration that whole HSR, but i might be wrong here, lets just say its nowhere close to Genshin
7. Few free 5* Light cones (equivalent of weapons) from huge rougelike type beat side-mode
8. Much better starter banner for new players iirc 50 pulls to get guarantee standard 5* once, also standard banner have special one time thingy where if you do 300 pulls on it you can pick standard 5* for your choice (you dont have Mona after 1000 pulls on standard banner? It wont happen here, you can pick her "for free" after 300 pulls)
9. Special currency for completing abyss floors which you can spend to buy some 4* light cones, some of them are pretty nice, well its always good to have more than less options
10. Starglitter exchange shop here lets you buy standard 5* Light Cones (imagine if you could buy lets say Amos Bow for 100 Masterless Stargliter) so you can always choose between some fast pulls - copy of char/constellation - light cone
11. Events are usually fully unlocked on DAY1, so no more waiting few days to unlock next part, you can oneshot them in the same day there are released if you want

I prob missed a lot but i think this list is already good enough 
TLDR: Way more QOL, everything seems shorter / faster / better(?)

[JusttJD]

@Zantarok @Milktastrophe @suffy_z

 

Thank you all for your comments, I really appreciate it

It does sound very, very interesting.

And Gacha wise, as well as time investment it sounds... better.

 

However, one of the things I love the most about Genshin is the exploration.

If that is not really present in Genshin, then I'm not sure it's for me.

However, I also don't want to regret missing out in case everything becomes bigger later on.

 

Started in year 2 with Genshin and missed out on so many events and Banners.

I'm gonna think about starting it, or not.

 

Thank you guys again.

[Nierou]

8 minutes ago, JusttJD said:

@Zantarok @Milktastrophe @suffy_z

 

Thank you all for your comments, I really appreciate it

It does sound very, very interesting.

And Gacha wise, as well as time investment it sounds... better.

 

However, one of the things I love the most about Genshin is the exploration.

If that is not really present in Genshin, then I'm not sure it's for me.

However, I also don't want to regret missing out in case everything becomes bigger later on.

 

Started in year 2 with Genshin and missed out on so many events and Banners.

I'm gonna think about starting it, or not.

 

Thank you guys again.

I'd recommend just trying it, it's not like the trophies are extremely time consuming. In addition your characters aren't as important as Genshin, At least for now. You can get through with just the starter team, your gear is what matters.

 

For me through it just has too much talking, I played for a few hours and most of it was talking. It obviously gets better once you get further but I just am not in the mood to get there currently. I did try my friends account who is very far, and it seems like a pretty basic turn-based game where you just play for a little every day until the end of time essentially.

[PIOTREK27-1982]

We should rather discuss why best Mihoyo game isn't even available on consoles yet.

[shadowblade528]

This game is a lot better than I thought it would be. The combat is fun, it introduces you to the world and characters in a very fast-paced way, and it doesn't feel grindy. At least in the first 6-7 hours. 

 

I reached a point in the story where you have to raise your trailblazer level to progress, and I was dreading the worst. Turns out, my fears were unfounded. I only had to do a few side missions. Most were just okay, but one was actually really good. It was called To The Faint Star, and told a really good story. There's also a bunch of other objectives that give you a lot of xp, so it wasn't a grind at all.

 

I think I'll be playing this game for a while. Not just to login for daily rewards, but because it's fun.

[ObsiEez]

13 hours ago, Katt said:

Button settings are way annoying. Sometimes a cursor would be nice, like Destiny 2. I just pull out my phone to tweak equipments and then continue on PS5 for the sake of saving time.

God I know that feeling. I played on PC so switching through light cones & equipment was super quick. On console it feels a lot more clunky & takes a few extra seconds to go through it all. Probably my only nitpick about the console version honestly. (Other than the occasional frame drops when moving the camera around too fast in certain areas) 

[DawningWolf55]

22 hours ago, Milktastrophe said:

The only downsides I've noticed are the budget is clearly much lower (which makes sense, isn't Genshin the most expensive to produce game of all time, plus Star Rail's scope of content is less). Genshin looks a lot better visually, Star Rail's graphics are fuzzy on PS5, looks like a PS3 game to be honest. And there's a lot of input lag after doing something. Like if you use a technique in the field, none of the other buttons like switching characters will respond for like 5-10 seconds.

I don't know about you, but the graphics look fine on my end. There is a slight fuzz on it due to a purposeful texture on it. But it's still really clear and looks like it replicates Honkai Impact much more but with the current Genshin graphic level. There isn't any input lag for me. I can press buttons rapidly even on the field and it works perfectly fine with no lag. Are you sure maybe your TV isn't on game mode or that your TV is going bad? Calling this a PS3 game isn't even close. This far outdoes the graphics of a PS3 game. It uses the same model figures and art that Genshin does.

[whodeygamer]

I’ve been playing since April and so far my limited 5 stars are Seele, Silver Wolf, and Imbibitor Lunae. (Also got IL’s light cone) My standard 5 stars are Bailu, Bronya, and Yanqing. My E6 4 stars are Pela, Serval, Asta, Herta, and Qinque. For some reason the game doesn’t want me to have Tingyun or Sampo which is annoying but other than that I can’t complain.

Edited October 15, 2023 by whodeygamer

[Milktastrophe]

1 hour ago, DawningWolf55 said:

I don't know about you, but the graphics look fine on my end. There is a slight fuzz on it due to a purposeful texture on it. But it's still really clear and looks like it replicates Honkai Impact much more but with the current Genshin graphic level. There isn't any input lag for me. I can press buttons rapidly even on the field and it works perfectly fine with no lag. Are you sure maybe your TV isn't on game mode or that your TV is going bad? Calling this a PS3 game isn't even close. This far outdoes the graphics of a PS3 game. It uses the same model figures and art that Genshin does.

Try collecting an item from the field, you'll be able to move around but can't collect another item or switch characters for like 10 seconds. Edit: if you haven't done it yet, Asta's office is a good place to showcase this issue because there's a lot of items to collect in close proximity.

 

Not my TV, other games, like Genshin look good. But I think they partially patched the fuzzy graphics. It is better than it was a few days ago, but still noticeable when you can see a characters full body in a cutscenes and the star rail map background.

Edited October 14, 2023 by Milktastrophe

[DawningWolf55]

1 hour ago, Milktastrophe said:

Try collecting an item from the field, you'll be able to move around but can't collect another item or switch characters for like 10 seconds. Edit: if you haven't done it yet, Asta's office is a good place to showcase this issue because there's a lot of items to collect in close proximity.

 

Not my TV, other games, like Genshin look good. But I think they partially patched the fuzzy graphics. It is better than it was a few days ago, but still noticeable when you can see a characters full body in a cutscenes and the star rail map background.

If you are talking about clicking the button to pick up an item, that is a bit of an issue. I just run away from the item and go back and spam the button. It's a slight inconvenience but it wasn't a big deal to me.

As for graphics, both Genshin and Star Rail have looked clean to me for the most part. If you are talking about if they close up to a character and the textures are blocky/pixelated a bit, that happens even in Genshin from time to time

[Milktastrophe]

What do people think about what to get from Herta's shop? I keep hearing the light cones are good and you shouldn't get the rail passes, but their effects don't seem that great to me.

[suffy_z]

2 hours ago, Milktastrophe said:

What do people think about what to get from Herta's shop? I keep hearing the light cones are good and you shouldn't get the rail passes, but their effects don't seem that great to me.

Decent 5* Light Cone (some might say more like 4,5*) vs 4 standard banner passes 
if we count superimposers its
5* S5 Light Cone vs 8 standard pulls, unless you are gambling addict believer "this 8 pulls will for sure get me something good from standard banner!" guaranteed 5* lightcone is straight up better investment for the account long-term, also you can buyout all Herta LCs and then pump everything into passes, tho its gonna take some time

New players can pull for Jingliu right now and get On the Fall of an Aeon (also very good for DHIL and Clara, no idea about other Destruction characters)
or wait few* days for Topaz and get Cruising in the Stellar Sea for her (also great for Seele, Sushang and Dan Heng, dunno about Yanqing)

Might not be their BiS but its very F2P solution and both Aeon and Stellar Sea are actually pretty good. I would say its more like "you can start the game with 5* char and somewhat nice 5* LC pretty fast). 
Solitary Healing and Texture of Memories might be different case, personally i would say tldr; Healing is kinda mediocre, Texture is usable(?)

Thats my way too long "L" take as usual, prob light spenders+ and/or light cone banner enjoyers might have different opinion

 

[Milktastrophe]

17 hours ago, suffy_z said:

Decent 5* Light Cone (some might say more like 4,5*) vs 4 standard banner passes 
if we count superimposers its
5* S5 Light Cone vs 8 standard pulls, unless you are gambling addict believer "this 8 pulls will for sure get me something good from standard banner!" guaranteed 5* lightcone is straight up better investment for the account long-term, also you can buyout all Herta LCs and then pump everything into passes, tho its gonna take some time

New players can pull for Jingliu right now and get On the Fall of an Aeon (also very good for DHIL and Clara, no idea about other Destruction characters)
or wait few* days for Topaz and get Cruising in the Stellar Sea for her (also great for Seele, Sushang and Dan Heng, dunno about Yanqing)

Might not be their BiS but its very F2P solution and both Aeon and Stellar Sea are actually pretty good. I would say its more like "you can start the game with 5* char and somewhat nice 5* LC pretty fast). 
Solitary Healing and Texture of Memories might be different case, personally i would say tldr; Healing is kinda mediocre, Texture is usable(?)

Thats my way too long "L" take as usual, prob light spenders+ and/or light cone banner enjoyers might have different opinion

 

But are these better than common 4* light cones?

 

On the Fall of an Aeon sounds worse than The Moles Welcome You (is there no stack limit? The description doesn't mention one), and maybe worse than Woof Walk Time if you have a dot build.

 

Cruising in the Stellar Sea sounds worse than Only Silence Remains, Return to Darkness, and possibly even River Flows in Spring if you're going for more turns.

[suffy_z]

3 hours ago, Milktastrophe said:

But are these better than common 4* light cones?

 

On the Fall of an Aeon sounds worse than The Moles Welcome You (is there no stack limit? The description doesn't mention one), and maybe worse than Woof Walk Time if you have a dot build.

 

Cruising in the Stellar Sea sounds worse than Only Silence Remains, Return to Darkness, and possibly even River Flows in Spring if you're going for more turns.

 

Again might be too long, i kinda feel a bit like a 🤓 "aint reading all that" but

tldr: Aeon and Stellar are not crazy op broken (thats why i said some people call them 4,5*) but they are mostly a bit better & already good enough, work on almost any character and are completely guaranteed free to S5 only gated by time, while other options require $/luck or in case of Woof/River spending currency which you might want to use on other better light cones. Of course you might say X 4* LC at S5 is better than lets say Stellar, but you could also do 1000 pulls and get 0 copies of X LC, very unlikely but possible. 1.3 banner showed a lot of people going over 90 pulls for Fu Xuan(5*) and getting her faster than 1 singular copy of Lynx(4*). At the end of the day we might be looking at some really low % dmg differences for some cases

The Moles Welcome You - after looking up apparently there is limit of 3 stacks, description is lets say not so good (1 stack for each basic attack, skill and ultimate)

If we gonna compare both Moles and Aeon at S1 then its 36% atk(Moles) vs 32% atk + better base stats + conditional 12% dmg for 2 turns (Aeon)
%dmg even if conditional is way better than %atk and more base stats make up for it << might not be the case for every character in game

Woof Walk Time looks great for Hook and maybe some other chars(?) S5 20% atk and 32% dmg to targets with burn/bleed; you might need to cook some weird teams for it to work tho but there are some other great options in LC Manifest Store which others might prioritize instead (Fermata for DoT, Past and Future, Breakfast and Quid Pro Quo)

Stellar Sea vs
Only Silence Remains - worse base stats, at S1 is conditional 12 Crit Rate vs 8%+conditional 8% Crit Rate, also a lot enemies summons adds so you can reproc ATK% from Stellar while Silence Crit Rate can be disabled by enemies appearing, gacha only = not guaranteed to get to S5
Return to Darkness - Battle Pass only, a bit worse base stats, 16%-32% fixed chance for dispel enemy buff(you trade off your own damage for utility) is i would say way too low to call it consistent, too random. %crate is almost the same again,  it will take 5 patches and 50$ iirc to get it to S5 vs 16 weeks and 0$
River Flows in Spring - decent but only if play with taunter/shielder in your team, you get hit once and its stops working for a moment, way too "risky", if you want to play it without shielder then it takes one enemy attack(most recently added enemies have ability to multihit/bounce attack or straight up aoe) to disable buff, unless you gonna say the legendary "you cant get damaged if enemies are dead"

If you want options that people actually had trouble deciding - for Hunt 4* LC look up Swordplay, for Destruction A Secret Vow is very interesting one.

[Milktastrophe]

Oh I didn't realize Return to Darkness was on the battle pass. I thought I had it but must've confused it for something else.

 

Several weeks vs gear you'll surely have in the first few days of playing sure is a hard sell though.

 

Edit: possibly another argument for getting the rail passes instead of that you'll probably get a 3 star light cones which gives you embers that you can save up for special rail passes which you can use to try to pull the featured character.

Edited October 23, 2023 by Milktastrophe