A Translated
XingQiu Handbook

5186.5% Multiplier Support - XingQiu [1]
https://nga.178.com/read.php?tid=23780292 (Dated Oct 18, 2020)
Making Use of a 4* Special Support: XingQiu [2]
https://nga.178.com/read.php?tid=23761710 (Dated Oct 17, 2020)

Translated by IonFox#8887, GRZ#4782, Folie #3334 & Azri K.#6137 from discord.gg/Keqing

Please direct all feedback, incorrect information and recommendations to IonFox#8887

In order to accommodate the rise in the number of viewers, we have moved to the link below. Thanks!
https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vRYt7lwTgFgQImSR_4llvG9mhkC6C4_DvWTINgynGqse1ke4CiJLmb_JnG8IWMr5o6v4BWgxETlIzKA/pub 

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1) Character Talent Evaluation

• Basic attack is fast, but has low motion values for both light and charged attacks, generally not useful. [1]

• E is a high damaging 2 hit skill which creates 4-5 Hydro energy particles [1] and one of the most mechanically versatile in the whole game [2]

• Hydro Application: After use, creates 3-4 orbiting rain swords. While the initial skill applies Hydro to yourself, it is only for ~0.3 secs and then it removes itself when the attack animation finishes, so self freezing is less of a worry. Moreover, when an orbiting rain sword touches an enemy it applies a Hydro status on them (but 0 damage, and no Hydro on self). The damage itself isn’t too big compared to other sources (reducing effectiveness as a Vaporize trigger), but applying two separate sources of Hydro is good for clearing off existing elements via reaction and then creating a Hydro aura.

• Interrupt Res: Swords grant Interrupt Resistance, which allow you to ignore SOME enemy attacks with lower motion values, though higher ones still have an effect. Testing with this can also yield information about motion values of certain monster attacks (thresholds, not specific values to indicate which monsters can bypass the resistance granted). [T/N: Author of [2] did some basic tests, but nothing exhaustive as there were too many different monster/attack combinations and was unsure of calculating specific motion values, and damage vs knockback values may be separate amounts.]

• Damage Reduction (1): The damage reduction of EACH rain sword instance can be broken down as follows: (20% base) + (up to 14% from talent levels) + (up to 24% as a portion of bonus hydro damage), leading to a max of 58% damage reduced.
  [T/N: While this is theoretically correct, it is unrealistic. A better number would be 20% + 8% (Level 6 Talent +3 from C5) + 13.32% (20% of Max 5* Hydro% Goblet and A4) = 41.32% DMG Reduction]

• Damage Reduction (2): Testing revealed a discrepancy between in-game ability description and the actual effect. In-game states that “When a character takes DMG, the Rain Sword will shatter, reducing the amount of DMG taken” implying that damage reduction can only happen once per rain sword as it breaks. Testing showed that for a high frequency of attacks (eg. Ruin Guard whirlwind) the damage reduction applied on every hit, indicating that the damage reduction is present as long as there is at least one Rain Sword orbiting you. [T/N: One comment also posited that the damage reduction could have had a lingering duration upon each shatter.]

• Healing: This works relatively simply. After Ascension 1, each time a Rain Sword is shattered or its duration expires, the current character is healed equal to 6% of XingQiu’s max hp. Note that refreshing any existing Rain Swords does not trigger recovery. [T/N: Taken here to mean that using E immediately again through Sacrificial Sword or by casting Q does not destroy and create new swords, but simply adds on to existing ones.]

• His Q creates a set of the maximum number of Rain Swords orbitals, and adds on 2-3 Hydro swords per attack (2-5 at C6), and the damage here can achieve one of the largest multipliers in the game [1]. [T/N: Points below are from [2]]

• After using Raincutter, the maximum number of Rain Swords is maintained throughout the whole duration BUT the swords cannot be shattered or expire, hence the damage reduction and interrupt res will be present but no healing will occur.

• Further elaborating on the number of swords per attack, at base level it will consistently alternate between 2 swords and 3 swords. At C6, the order is 2 Swords -> 3 Swords -> 5 Swords, repeat. The swords are spawned mid-air, tracking onto a single enemy in front usually, flying in a straight line but they can be blocked by terrain/obstacles.

• There appears to be a 1 second internal cooldown between Hydro Sword set attacks/spawns, and you can launch a maximum of 15 or 18 sets depending on whether or not you have C2.

• Since each Hydro Sword is a unique and separate source of damage, they are very good at removing existing elements/triggering reactions and THEN reapplying a hydro aura onto the enemy.

• The damage calculation of Hydro Swords is dynamic rather than static, meaning that buffs or any changes in values after activating Raincutter, will affect Hydro Sword damage as expected.

• Note: If you use E (skill) and then use Q (burst), the Rain Swords from Raincutter will “cover up” the swords of Fatal Rainscreen. Hence, for the entire duration of Q, only Rain Swords from Q will be in effect. After Raincutter wears off, the rain swords will revert to those from Fatal Rainscreen (E). Hence, healing will still not be possible while Raincutter is in effect, and also of interest is that the duration of Rain Swords from E is still counting down in the background even during Raincutter, and hence will expire shortly after Raincutter ends.

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2) XingQiu’s Role in the Team

• Strictly a pure support and possibly secondary healer, due to the minor healing and damage reduction (which reduces healing needed). He can be seen as versatile, a bit like Jean, but unfortunately his healing scales with HP and not ATK. Hence, it is good to avoid hits altogether, and let XingQiu fill the gaps in your play.

• For C0, XingQiu is mostly a hydro application unit. At C1, start considering artifacts to help out his recharge. For C3 and beyond, seriously put thought into increasing XingQiu’s ability to add DPS as an offscreen support. [T/N: At C0, XingQiu is already good at offense/defense, he simply has amazing constellations.]

• He is a very resource hungry unit, especially as a support. A well invested and equipped XingQiu with proper weapons and artifacts will make gameplay much smoother and easier, and particularly complements main melee DPS’s (in particular Diluc, given the slower time of claymore attacks).

• It is worth noting that the healing provided by XingQiu can be said to be higher than just 24% of his own hp, due to the fact that there is damage resistance/reduction on top of the healing procs, and it helps to think of it as a shield that reduces all incoming damage by up to 58% while active, which is very potent especially in later levels of the Abyss. The true amount of damage reduced will only go up as content difficulty scales higher, and higher damage makes the Rain Swords more valuable.

• XingQiu vs Barbara: One other positive of XingQiu’s Rain Swords is that there is no wasted healing. Compared to Barbara, every tick of healing on a full hp character is wasted. For example, if a character only got damaged after the 2nd tick of healing, that’s already two heal procs wasted. On the other hand, if XingQiu was used, not only would the damage of that hit be mitigated by a Rain Sword, the character would be healed immediately, and as such no heal procs are wasted. Moreover, Barbara’s skill cooldown is 32 seconds (or 27 at C2) while XingQiu’s is only 21 seconds.
  [T/N: Removing the section comparing Barbara’s passive healing to XingQiu, because Barbara’s talent level and A4 were not considered vs XingQiu’s flat 6% of his max hp.]
  Finally, XingQiu has much better control over his own skill’s cooldown efficiency compared to Barbara, since he can just activate it immediately while Barbara generally needs to wait till damage has already been sustained. Also, Barbara herself will always eat the first tick of her own passive healing, reducing the amount of healing others can receive by a quarter at the start.

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3) Suggested Level and Talent Investment

• As a support, it is recommended to get him to level 70 for his A4 talent, which boosts Hydro damage by 20%. (You can leave him at 60 if you want.)

• E: Fatal Rainscreen honestly has one of the best multipliers in the game, with a 168+191=359% multiplier at level 1. At C0 and level 70 [T/N: Talent level 6], it can reach a 235+268=503% skill with no conditions. Since levelling this talent also increases the damage reduction of the Rain Swords, regardless of whether you care about damage or not, this skill’s priority is very high, and should be raised in parallel with his burst (though slightly lower priority if resources are tight).

• Q: Raincutter. This is a very high damage skill, where if you are able to launch the full 18 sets of swords, are able to achieve the dream of attaining a 5186.5% damage skill. [T/N: Author apologises if the number is inaccurate, he simply copied it from [1] without checking the math] Regardless, the scaling on this skill is very high and definitely a priority if you are C3 or above. It is a super priority if you are C6.

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4) Evaluating XingQiu’s Power

[T/N: This is from [1], and the damage reduction calculation has been covered earlier so this will only look at the “5186.5% multiplier” on his burst. Moreover, some of the information here is conflicting so this section will be supplemented by the translator’s findings and organised in a sensible manner to reach a conclusion.]

• At Talent Level 10, XingQiu has a (expected) multiplier of 94.3%, therefore a 5186.5% possible multiplier over the whole duration of his burst

• XingQiu generates the following number of swords per burst, and using a projected 80.1% multiplier at level 7:

• 22322222322323 = 33*80.1 = 2643.3%
• 23322223232232223 = 43*80.1 = 3444.3%
• 22523523522523523 = 53*80.1 = 4245.3%

• Notes: This is all highly theoretical and idealised, in practice, most people only achieve about 60%-80% of the maximum possible number of hydro swords. Your actual performance will depend heavily on the situation, team comp and your own rotation optimisation.

[T/N: Sorry to disappoint but while the concept is correct, all of the above numbers are wrong. I will be posting my own analysis of the above here:

• From earlier, and testing video clips, XingQiu’s ult is confirmed to summon hydro swords according to a pattern, either 2/3/2/3… or 2/3/5/2/3/5… once you reach C6
• Given that at C6, his burst last 18 seconds and that there is an internal timer of 1 second between sword waves, launching 17 waves of swords seems to be the ideal (given minor human response lag), hence bringing the maximum total number of swords launched to be [(2+3+5)*6] - 5 = 55 swords
• At Ascension 4, the highest talent level is 9, which gives each sword a 92.3% multiplier (confirmed in game)
• Hence, this would bring the ideal total multiplier over the course of a level 9 Raincutter to: 55*92.3% = 5076.5%
• For reference, Raincutter’s level 10/11 multipliers should be 97.7%/103.0% respectively.

Translator has no idea where the author acquired his numbers, but the ones here are those presented in-game with testing.]

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5) Choice of Weapons

• Undisputed for both sources, Sacrificial Sword was considered best in slot compared to everything else

• Sacrificial Sword -> Skyward Blade -> Any 4* Recharge or ATK% [1]

• Sacrificial best in slot, after that prioritise weapons with a high base attack and recharge substat. Otherwise, look for crit -> atk% -> EM -> Phys% [2]

• Sacrificial Sword: 

At level 80/80, this weapon has an attack of 401 and gives 55.9% extra energy recharge. Special attention must be given when using XingQiu’s skill with this weapon in case the cooldown is reset, epscially since you have two chances to do so. An important test finding is that if you want to get elemental particles from both skills, you MUST wait for the first animation to finish before starting your second use, otherwise your second use will not generate energy.

So what else does Sacrificial Sword do besides doubling skill damage? Well, lets take a look at a doublecast of XingQiu’s elemental skill. From the use of his E, Xingqiu can get: 2.7*4 to 5*(100%+55.9%)*2 = 42.04 (whichever is larger). From here, Xingqiu only needs an additional 38 energy before he can use his burst again. Currently, a double E proc generates 8-10 elemental particles, and according to the elemental particle test comparison, this is about 27 energy (the maximum value). However, this is assuming he is active for both sets of particle pickup, when in reality he may only pick up the first set, and the particles from his second E cast will be picked up by your DPS, and all calculations were done with XingQiu as the active character. Therefore, if XingQiu is purely used as a backline Hydro applier, he would need 296% recharge to completely cover the cost of his burst alone, which shows it is obviously not feasible to expect him to charge his skills on his own. (C6 XingQius can completely ignore this comment)
[T/N: The translator is unsure of the above math, but agrees with the conclusion. Moreover, the section and math on using Mona DPS to generate more hydro-aligned particles is not covered here, but it definitely shows that a Mona DPS would be the best case to recharge XingQiu’s burst when he is in the support role.]

In conclusion, when running XingQiu as a support, going for 296% energy recharge is totally wrong. Rather than doing that, the author personally prefers to use another character to make up for Xingqiu's fundamental flaw, as there are very few ways of getting energy. [1]

A good thing to note is that an R3 Sacrificial Sword passive (Every 22 seconds) matches up almost perfectly with XingQiu’s skill cooldown (21 seconds) [2]

• Favonius Sword: Favonius Sword as an Energy Recharge sword has the same substat scaling as Sacrificial Sword, but can't proc the sword's passive as a support. It is completely surpassed by Sacrificial, but a usable alternative.
  [T/N: This weapon’s passive unfortunately does not work while XingQiu is not the active character, but it is still a very good choice if you don’t have Skyward/Sacrificial.]

• Skyward Blade: 
  While the Skyward Blade has 5.6 lower energy gain(he probably referred to the direct energy value gain here) compared to the sacrificial sword, we tested it with the dps combo/pattern of the sacrificial sword and obtained an energy gain result of: 2.7 * 4-5 * (100% + 50.3%) = 20.2 Energy. Taking normal Xingqiu's off-field total energy gain for comparison: Sacrificial: 42.04 Skyward: 20.2 So compared to the sacrificial sword, the energy coverage for elemental resonance team:
  
  Mona grants Xingqiu:
  1st E energy coverage: 14.42, 20.2 + 14.42 = 34.44, 46 energy away from burst
  2nd E energy coverage: 28.84, 20.2 + 28.84 = 49.04, 31 energy away from burst
  Venti Passive = 15 energy, 20.2 + 15 = 35.2, 45 energy away from burst
  
  From what we know, Mona and Xingqiu with the skyward would be getting elemental particles that give (4 to 5) + (3 to 4/6 to 8) To reach the same energy gain as sacrificial, the energy recharge we need with Skyward Blade would be: Mona 1st E Cast Coverage: 57 / (52.7+42.4)=246%
  Mona 2nd E Cast Coverage: 71.96/(52.7+82.4)=220%
  Venti Passive 15 Energy: 40.2 / 20.2 = 199%
  
  Conclusion, The Skyward Blade is not recommended for Xingqiu, as compared to the sacrificial it would require an additional 50-140% energy recharge (Depending on enemy/situation) to reach the same energy gain as sacrificial sword, compared to the extra atk stat that you can get from skyward, it's more recommended to be using the sacrificial sword which offers more utility and flexibility.

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6) Artifacts

[T/N: The majority of this is taken from [2], where the author strongly prefers investing into crit stats (hydro swords can crit) over EM for reaction damage, reason in conclusions]

• 4 piece Instructor: XingQiu is one of the few supports who can leverage the full effect of this set as a support. Given his kit, he can easily trigger reactions regularly, allowing him to benefit from the EM. Furthermore, using his skill causes 2 applications of hydro, making it likely for him to trigger a reaction in that instance, activating the 120 EM bonus for his team, and then applying a Hydro aura, allowing the DPS or follow-up to trigger another reaction with the now buffed EM. If this set is chosen, be sure to aim for 200%-250% of energy recharge (C6 will reduce this threshold, but try to not fall below 200%). More elemental damage is a priority for a stronger burst, followed by crit stats and then attack.

• 2 Exile/2 Scholar: This set grants you the most recharge, and is also the easiest set to use with the Sacrificial Sword to reach 250% recharge for comfortably ulting as much as possible. With this setup, reacquiring your ult will be very fast, especially with 2 consecutive skill casts, though damage may fall off a little. For stats, look for crit stats and then attack.

• 2 Noblesse/2 Recharge: Provides a sizable damage buff to your burst while still boosting recharge,  definitely recommended when C3 and above, and still a good choice even at C6. It is currently unclear if Noblesse’s 20% damage buff is multiplicative or additive [T/N: Thought to be additive] but further testing is needed. Priority is hitting your recharge target, then going for crit then attack.

• 4 piece Noblesse: As of writing, there may be some big bosses [T/N: Whaaales] who have been able to obtain good rolls on this set. If you are able to obtain a good energy recharge hourglass and hydro% cup, AND your recharge substats are able to meet the desired target, then pure damage boosting sets like Noblesse can be used, and is probably the most ideal set for a support XingQiu. This was previously not recommended given the difficulty in acquiring this set, and probably is not fully feasible without bonus energy recharge from C6. Once again, if the recharge target can be met, priority is given to crit and then attack stats.
  
  [T/N: [1] largely agrees with this assessment, saying priority stats are given to hydro%, atk%, crit and then EM, and going 2/2 is an acceptable alternative]
  
  [T/N: Update, this is BiS regardless of whether you have C6 or not, as long as you have a 4* recharge sword, might not need a recharge hourglass if you have ER substats. ]

• 2 Maiden/2 Exile or Noblesse: This is strictly for utilising XingQiu as a healer and not as a support, obviously you would prioritise hp and recharge as your preferred stats. The reason 4 piece Maiden is not used is due to the inherent anti-synergy between XingQiu’s skill and his burst, where Rain Swords are unable to shatter or expire and heal you for the whole duration.
  
  Now, it is rare to choose XingQiu as your main healer, but it is feasible, just only choose this path with at least C1 for the extra Rain Sword. XingQiu vs Barbara was briefly covered earlier already, but it is possible for his passive healing to match and even exceed hers, and not require the downtime of a burst skill, allowing you to actually have a useful support burst.
  
  Assuming you are using Sacrificial Sword, check whether your first E cast reset itself. If it did, simply recast it when all 4 Rain Swords have been used/expire. Otherwise, use your burst after all 4 Rain Swords have been used and DO NOT use your skill during your burst [T/N: Due to the timer running in the background as mentioned section 1]. Afterwards, use your E again. This whole healing cycle takes about 15 seconds per rotation, and using up all Rain Swords simply means you proceed as normal.
  
  Note: If you opt to use XingQiu as a main healer, it helps to have some foreknowledge of the encounter you’ll be facing, such that you can reliably precast your E in advance to prevent incoming damage as well as make efficient use of the cooldown.

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7) Team Composition/Partners

• XQ’s current highlights are damage reduction and his high damage potential elemental burst. He is a backline carry, and as such we only need to consider his synergy with current main DPS characters.

• Razor: Razor’s burst lasts 15 seconds, perfectly overlapping XQ’s burst. During downtime, we can use Qiqi or Kaeya support, and burst swap to XQ before using Razor’s burst. This resolves Razor’s survivability and shield breaking issues. Razor also primarily uses his normal attack, mechanically a perfect match for XQ.

• Diluc: When supporting Diluc, XQ can continuously apply the wet status. Diluc’s attacks apply pyro damage after using his burst, for continuous vaporize reactions. Diluc’s attack combos (aeaeaea/aeaaeaaeaa) generate 6 pyro particles to help charge XQ’s burst. Highly recommended pairing.

Note: When using pyro characters, it is possible to utilize both components of the electrocharged status to create vaporize and overloaded reactions. You must apply electro first, then hydro, and finally pyro - any other sequence will not work. See image below for proof. [T/N: Works in line with elemental gauge theory]

• Fischl: Fischl’s Lvl 70 talent must be triggered by the current character to activate Oz’s bonus damage. XQ’s ability durations cover Oz’s time on the field. This is the best way to utilize a normal attack, main DPS focused XQ.

• Beidou: With testing, it appears that Beidou’s shield and XQ’s damage reduction are not additive. Due to her 80 energy burst Beidou is best played with electro team resonance for additional energy generation, which helps XQ’s burst usage. Though XQ’s burst has excellent synergy with Beidou’s burst with overlapping durations, Beidou is not well suited for a main DPS role in the current Spiral Abyss.

• KeQing: There is significant variance between the three popular KeQing archetypes

• Noblesse + TF: Common in Spiral Abyss teams. This build rarely uses normal or charge attacks, usually teamed with double anemo or anemo/mona for a quick-swap strategy that does not utilize a main DPS character. XQ is of minimal value for this team type.

• 4TF (not recommended): This build is still primarily quick-swap, utilizing elemental skill spam with the C1 talent, with minimal normal/charge attacks. Poor XQ synergy.

• 4TS (or TF + Gladiator): This archetype stays on the field as core DPS, and uses normal and charge attacks after the E/Q/E combo. XQ should burst before the KeQing combo, to maximize utility on KeQing’s talent and C4/C6 buffs. A good DPS synergy with support XingQiu.

[T/N: While this does not affect Sacrificial Sword still being the best weapon for XingQiu, testing has shown that Lion’s Roar passive will still be active even if he is not active, making it a reasonable alternative weapon to equip in a Keqing team as Raincutter will do bonus damage to enemies afflicted by Electro/Pyro. The same logic applies to enemies affected by pyro with a DPS like Diluc.]

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8) Conclusions

• For now, using XingQiu as a DPS or mere hydro aura applier is not recommended, due to low basic attack modifiers and the lack of a good hydro team comp.

• Within XingQiu’s role as a support, his skill, and more importantly his ult, both focus on multiple rapid hits which result in a large total amount of damage over time rather than singular large chunks. Hence, this encourages us to focus on critical stats and even attack over Elemental Mastery, since the payoff is not as large [T/N: Author is speaking with respect to Vaporize due to it’s late game scaling]. The only case in which EM can be worth considering is in the case of electro based reactions, but that damage itself tends to be lackluster.

• XingQiu vs Mona:

• Mona wins in terms of damage amplification over short periods of time, burst situations and mobbing

• XQ wins through sheer damage numbers over longer times, and constant hydro application and possible reaction triggers

• If you own both, use Mona if you lack resources (5* being more immediately powerful)

• If it is C2 or C3 XQ vs C0 Mona, they appear rather equal

• If you can afford resources to focus a pure support, it is the author's opinion that XingQiu will get better and that the gap between XingQiu and Mona will only widen as the late game continues to scale up
  [T/N: It is not stated but this is likely comparing XQ to a C0 Mona. Both Mona’s C1 and C4 have amazing benefits as a support, and any comparison will need to be reassessed.]

• Otherwise, with adequate investment to at least A4, XingQiu is an amazing support with both offensive and defensive capabilities, auxiliary healing and great elemental potential

[T/N: A final disclaimer, almost everything shown in this document is translated from the Chinese sources, based upon their ideas and testing. While some areas have been tested over in discord.gg/Keqing, it is still very possible that points presented here be inaccurate. The handbook will be updated as testing continues on our end.]

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TL;DR

“This is a great piece of work, translator person! But what if I just want a quick and dirty guide on how to actually build him?” Fine.

Investment: Minimum A4, level 60, raise his skill and ult talent levels as much as possible, but the more you invest the greater his returns, he scales extremely well. XingQiu is perfectly good at C0, but scales well with further constellations too.

Weapon: Sacrificial Sword

Artifacts: 4 piece Noblesse Oblige

• Hydro% cup, Recharge Hourglass, Atk%/Crit Circlet (or Atk% Hourglass and Crit Circlet)
• You probably want about 180% - 200% recharge to have your ult up consistently (which can be reached with an upgraded weapon and 5* hourglass alone). If you can reach that with your weapon and substats alone, you can consider an Atk% hourglass and then a crit circlet. Your first goal is to always have XingQiu’s ult active as much as possible.
• Substat priority: Crit stats/Atk% -> EM (Basically DPS stat optimisation)

If you have questions about his mechanics or alternative choices, please read further into the relevant sections. Thank you~!

Bonus:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owRDAmwniZ8 (XQ support vs WL6 Electro Hypo)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OVToVqONFiw (XQ support vs WL6 Dvalin)

Some footage from discord.gg/Keqing during XingQiu testing, credit to BaoSheng (Disclaimer: The above videos do not use the Barbara bug to boost Hydro damage)

https://www.reddit.com/r/Genshin_Impact/comments/jjc13r/xingqiu_support_is_underrated_build_in_comments/ (Gameplay of XQ support by u/Rubber_Moose)