Cerydra — Honkai Star Rail Character Guide

Overview

Skill-DMG specialist who duplicates ally Skills at full power with massive CRIT DMG and RES PEN buffs. Designed specifically for Skill-focused DPS like Phainon and Anaxa, but falls off sharply for DPS who don't deal primarily Skill DMG.

Harmony support who grants an ally "Military Merit," a charging buff that upgrades to "Peerage" at 6 Charge, enabling Coup de Main — a free duplicate of the ally's Skill at full power. Peerage grants 72% Skill CRIT DMG and 10% All-Type RES PEN. Cerydra passively provides ATK equal to 24% of her own ATK via Military Merit, deals Wind Additional DMG on every ally attack, and grants flat SPD to herself and the buffed ally. Designed for Skill-DMG-focused DPS like Phainon and Anaxa.

Key Mechanics

• Peerage requires 6 Charge to activate. Charge sources: Skill (+1), Ultimate (+2), ally Basic ATK/Skill (+1 each via Talent), ally Ultimate (+1 once per battle via A4). Fastest path is Technique (auto-Skill) → ally actions → Cerydra Skill → ally actions to reach 6.
• Coup de Main copies the ally's Skill at full power without consuming SP or resources. The copy executes before the actual Skill, so both benefit from Peerage's 72% CRIT DMG and 10% RES PEN. After Coup de Main, 6 Charge is consumed and Peerage reverts to Military Merit.
• Military Merit target cannot be switched without resetting Charge to 0. Commit to one DPS for the entire fight. If the target is defeated, Military Merit and all Charge are lost.
• ATK is the primary stat priority — 24% of Cerydra's ATK transfers to the ally via Military Merit, and her Additional DMG scales with ATK. The A2 trace also converts excess ATK into personal CRIT DMG.
• A6 provides flat +20 SPD to both Cerydra and the buffed ally on Skill use, lasting 3 turns. This allows the DPS to run lower base SPD (e.g., 140 pre-buff to hit 160 in-combat).

Best DPS Pairings

Anaxa (S), Phainon (S), Seele (S), Mydei (A)

Investment Priority

1. E1 — Transformative for Phainon specifically — 36% total DEF ignore plus 2 Coreflames per Skill instead of 1, vastly accelerating his Ultimate rotation. First priority for Phainon owners.
2. LC S1 — Signature provides 54% Skill DMG buff to the target, massive ATK for Military Merit scaling, and an SP refund on Ultimate that partially offsets her SP-negative playstyle.
3. E2 — 40% DMG increase for the buffed target is a solid power boost. Mostly a stepping stone toward E6, not a standalone stopping point.

Best Relics

Recommended: sacerdos-relived-ordeal with lushaka-the-sunken-seas

Stat targets: ATK 4000+, SPD 140 pre-buff (160+ in-combat)

Main stats: Body: ATK% · Feet: SPD · Sphere: ATK% · Rope: Energy Regen / ATK%

Important Notes

• E1 is transformative specifically for Phainon teams — 36% DEF ignore and doubled Coreflame generation. Strongly recommended before pulling signature for Phainon owners.
• Fully SP-negative playstyle — requires SP-positive teammates or careful rotation planning for long encounters without Cerydra signature.
• Peerage buffs (72% CRIT DMG, 10% RES PEN) are consumed after each Coup de Main, requiring 6 Charge to rebuild. Uptime is inherently intermittent.
• Best with Skill-heavy DPS only — characters who deal damage primarily via Basic ATK, Ultimate, or follow-ups gain minimal value from Cerydra.