Yanqing — Honkai Star Rail Character Guide

Yanqing is a Ice Hunt DPS in Honkai: Star Rail, and this HSR build guide covers teams, relics, light cones, and investment priority. Best teams use Sunday, Bronya, Aventurine; recommended relics are Scholar Lost in Erudition with Firmament Frontline: Glamoth; the top light cone is In the Night; the first investment target is E4; Yanqing is strongest in Memory of Chaos (MoC T5).

Ice Hunt DPS · MoC T5 · PF T5 · AS T5

For account-specific results, use the HSR team builder, compare upgrades in Pull Advisor, optimize equipment in the Light Cone Advisor, or read the StarGuide methodology.

Overview

Single-target Ice DPS who gains massive CRIT buffs via Soulsteel Sync but instantly loses them if hit. Requires a shielder exclusively and struggles against AoE-heavy content. Functional with heavy investment but outclassed by modern DPS.

Single-target Ice Hunt DPS who activates Soulsteel Sync via Skill, gaining massive CRIT buffs and a 60% chance to launch follow-up attacks with Freeze potential. Ultimate further stacks CRIT Rate (+60%) and CRIT DMG (+50%) for one turn of burst. The entire kit collapses if Yanqing takes any damage — even 1 HP — which removes Soulsteel Sync instantly, requiring a full turn to reactivate via Skill. Mandatory shield sustain and careful CC management define his team-building constraints.

Key Mechanics

Soulsteel Sync is binary — any damage to HP removes it entirely. Only shields prevent this; healing after damage is too late. This restricts sustain options to Aventurine and Gepard exclusively.
Crowd control effects (Freeze, Concussion) skip Yanqing's turn, expiring the 1-turn Soulsteel Sync without him acting. Bronya and Sunday both cleanse before advancing, making them critical for CC-heavy content.
CRIT Rate overcapping is unavoidable: Talent provides 20%, Ultimate provides 60%, totaling 80% base CRIT Rate during Ultimate turns. Building additional CRIT Rate on relics is wasteful — prioritize CRIT DMG instead.
140 Energy Ultimate is among the highest costs in the game. Energy support from Sunday or Tingyun is needed to maintain buff uptime across cycles.
Entirely single-target with no AoE capability. Follow-up attacks only hit the same target. Severely underperforms in Pure Fiction and any multi-target content.

Best Yanqing Teams

Standard Hypercarry

Universal single-target hypercarry setup. Yanqing uses Skill to activate Soulsteel Sync (20% CRIT Rate, 30% CRIT DMG), then Ultimate for +60% CRIT Rate and +50% CRIT DMG when Sync is active. Two amplifiers cover action advance or buffs. A shield sustain is mandatory — any damage removes Soulsteel Sync entirely, so healing-only sustains make him non-functional. Careful SPD tuning for action advancers and frequent shield refresh are required to maintain buff windows.

B-tier: Yanqing, Sunday, Bronya, Aventurine
B-tier: Yanqing, Sunday, Tingyun, Aventurine
B-tier: Yanqing, Silver Wolf, Bronya, Aventurine
C-tier: Yanqing, Sparkle, Tingyun, Aventurine

Freeze Focus

Composition emphasizing stacked Freeze application. Yanqing's 60% follow-up chance carries a 65% Freeze rate; Gepard adds a second Freeze source via Skill. A Break-efficiency amplifier accelerates Freeze on Toughness-bar enemies. Frozen enemies cannot act — reducing incoming damage and lowering the chance that Soulsteel Sync drops between refreshes. Works especially well in Simulated Universe with the Path of Remembrance.

B-tier: Yanqing, Ruan Mei, Sparkle, Gepard

Best Yanqing Teammates

Amplifiers: Sunday (S), Bronya (S), Sparkle (A), Silver Wolf (A), Ruan Mei (B), Tingyun (B), Pela (C), Trailblazer • Remembrance (C)

Sustains: Aventurine (S), Gepard (A), March 7th (D)

Yanqing Investment Priority

E4 — 12% Ice RES PEN while above 80% HP — easy to maintain with mandatory shields, reliable permanent multiplicative damage increase.
LC S1 — In the Night provides CRIT Rate and SPD-gated Skill/Ultimate DMG buffs that stack well with his enormous base CRIT stats.
E6 — Extends Ultimate buffs when an enemy is defeated, adding meaningful uptime in multi-wave content.

Yanqing Relics and Stat Targets

Recommended: Scholar Lost in Erudition with Firmament Frontline: Glamoth

Stat targets: SPD 134 / 143, CRIT DMG 160%+, ATK 2500+

Main stats: Body: CRIT DMG · Feet: SPD · Sphere: Ice DMG > ATK% · Rope: ATK%

Best Yanqing Light Cones

In the Night (Best in Slot): Best-in-slot. Provides CRIT Rate and scales Basic/Skill DMG and Ultimate CRIT DMG per 10 SPD above 100. Yanqing's 109 base SPD and A6 trace (10% SPD on CRIT hit for 2 turns) make reaching 4-6 stacks straightforward with a SPD-focused build.
Sleep Like the Dead: Strong alternative. High CRIT DMG base stat pairs well with his already-excessive CRIT Rate. The reactive CRIT Rate buff when Basic or Skill doesn't crit acts as a safety net during Ultimate downtime when his 80% CRIT Rate bonus is absent.
Cruising in the Stellar Sea: Accessible standard pool option. CRIT Rate bonus and ATK% on kill provide steady stats without special conditions. Best minimum viable choice for players who cannot obtain In the Night.
Only Silence Remains: Budget 4-star option. ATK boost and CRIT Rate when 2 or fewer enemies are present matches his single-target niche well. Performance drops significantly when more than 2 enemies are present, limiting usefulness in multi-wave scenarios.

Yanqing FAQ

Who works best with Yanqing in HSR?

Yanqing's best team options include Sunday, Bronya, Aventurine. StarGuide rates teammates by role and composition fit so the recommendation reflects how the character is actually played.

What relics should Yanqing use?

Yanqing's recommended relic setup is Scholar Lost in Erudition with Firmament Frontline: Glamoth, with stat targets around SPD 134 / 143, CRIT DMG 160%+, ATK 2500+.

What is the best light cone for Yanqing?

In the Night is the top listed light cone for Yanqing. Best-in-slot. Provides CRIT Rate and scales Basic/Skill DMG and Ultimate CRIT DMG per 10 SPD above 100. Yanqing's 109 base SPD and A6 trace (10% SPD on CRIT hit for 2 turns) make reaching 4-6 stacks straightforward with a SPD-focused build.

How should I invest in Yanqing?

Yanqing's first listed investment priority is E4. 12% Ice RES PEN while above 80% HP — easy to maintain with mandatory shields, reliable permanent multiplicative damage increase.

Important Notes

Mandatory shielder: only Aventurine or Gepard work. Any damage — including a single-digit hit — drops Soulsteel Sync immediately, costing a full turn to reactivate.
CC effects (Freeze, Concussion) skip Yanqing's turn, expiring the 1-turn Soulsteel Sync without him acting. Bronya or Sunday cleanse is highly recommended.
Entirely single-target with no AoE capability. 60% follow-up chance only hits one enemy. Severely underperforms in Pure Fiction and multi-target content.
140 Energy Ultimate cost is among the highest in the game. Energy support (Sunday, Tingyun) or high SP investment is needed to maintain buff uptime.
CRIT Rate overcapping is unavoidable: Talent adds 20%, Ultimate adds 60%, creating 80% base during Ultimate turns. Accept the waste and build CRIT DMG instead.
A6 SPD buff requires CRIT hits to trigger. If Soulsteel Sync drops and base CRIT Rate falls to 5%, the SPD buff becomes inconsistent, disrupting SPD tuning with action advancers.