The best DPS in Honkai Star Rail

Honkai Star Rail DPS Steele
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We’ll need proper damage to stop the Stellaron

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Combat in Honkai: Star Rail starts off relatively simple. Once you get going though, the difficulty begins to ramp up. If you find your back against the wall, you may wonder which characters inflict the best DPS in Honkai: Star Rail.

Before getting started, you should redeem your 80 free rolls in Honkai: Star Rail. If you’re lucky with those pulls, some of the five star DPS characters can carry your team alone. But even if you’re not that lucky, the four star characters you earn for free through the story can excel with the right team composition. Here are some top picks.

Honkai: Star Rail Seele character information
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Seele, the best DPS in Honkai: Star Rail

I must start this ranking with the five star character Seele, who is currently featured on the Character Event Warp banner. She does Quantum-based damage, which delays enemy actions and inflicts additional damage upon Weakness Break. Furthermore, her path is The Hunt, which specializes in single-target damage.

Seele’s Basic Attack is Thwack. This move straightforwardly deals Quantum damage to a single target based on her ATK. Her skill Sheathed Blade deals greater Quantum damage to a single target and increases her SPD for two turns. Finally, her Ultimate Butterfly Flurry inflicts a whopping 255% Quantum damage based on her ATK to a single enemy.

As you can see, Seele’s impressive single-target attacks makes her very good at taking out a lone enemy with ease. However, thanks to her talent Resurgence, Seele also gains buffs and an extra turn when defeating an enemy. This makes her incredibly deadly even when faced with groups of enemies.

Honkai: Star Rail Himeko character screen
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Himeko, master of multi-target annihilation

A very close second would have to be the five star character Himeko. Walking the Area of Effect (AoE) focused Erudition path, her Fire-based damage can quickly weaken an entire group of enemies.

Her Basic Attack, Sawblade Tuning, deals Fire damage to a single enemy. Both her Skill and her Ultimate are multi-target, with the former dealing damage to those adjacent to her target and the latter hitting all enemies on the field. Additionally, for every three Weakness Breaks your party inflicts, Himeko will trigger her Victory Rush Talent and inflict even more AoE damage. If you’re facing groups of tough foes, Himeko packs some of the highest damage potential in Honkai: Star Rail.

Pairing Himeko with the right Light Cone will boost her damage even further. If you’re lucky enough to get it in a Warp, I recommend using the five star light cone Night on the Milky Way. When equipped, this will increase her damage based on the number of enemies on the field.

Honkai: Star Rail Quinque character screen
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Qingque, huge potential with the right RNG

If you don’t mind a bit of a gamble, four star Qingque can be the perfect DPS for your team. She is somewhat of a hybrid of the two characters above, as she deals Quantum damage from the AoE-focused Erudition path. The greatest thing about Qingque is that she can be obtained as part of the permanent Turquoise’s Reverie event. By reaching Trailblaze Level 21 and clearing Memory Stage 3 of Forgotten Hall, you’ll recruit her for free.

As mentioned at the top, Qingque is very RNG based. For example, her Basic Attack Flower Pick deals damage to a single-target by default. However, it has the chance to spread to adjacent enemies due to her Celestial Jade talent. Her ultimate attack A Quartet? Woo-hoo! deals an average amount of damage to all enemies, with the bonus of triggering Celestial Jade once more.

Due to her unpredictable nature, it’s hard to say she’s the absolute best DPS in Honkai: Star Rail. But with the right luck, she can deal more damage than anyone.

Serval character screen
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Serval, the best lightning DPS in Honkai: Star Rail

As of writing, Serval can be obtained at the start of the game as part of the pre-registration rewards given to everyone. Even as a four star character, she can deal some impressive damage as part of the AoE-focused Erudition path. Her attacks also deal Lightning damage, which can apply the damage-over-time Shock effect.

The Basic Attack Roaring Thunderclap deals Lightning damage to a target, but also bounces to a random adjacent target as well. Her Skill Lightning Flash deals significant damage to a target and adjacent enemies with a 80% chance of inflicting Shock. Finally, her Ultimate Here Comes the Mechanical Fever zaps all enemies on the field and also extends the duration of Shock on them.

Dang Heng character screen
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Honorable Mention: Dan Heng

Many would make the argument that Dan Heng isn’t flashy enough to be the best DPS in Honkai: Star Rail. Like Seele, he’s from The Hunt path which specializes in single-target damage. Similar to Serval, his Wind attacks cause a DoT effect called Wind Shear upon Weakness Break.

What makes Dan Heng so strong is the ability to chain all of his attacks to deal massive damage to a single enemy. His Skill Cloudlancer Art: Torrent will lower an enemy’s speed upon landing a Critical Hit, while his Ultimate Ethereal Dream does bonus damage to an enemy that has been slowed. It’s easy to see how his damage can quickly ramp up when played and built optimally.

Hopefully this helps you decide who will be your best DPS in Honkai: Star Rail. If you want to continue building the best team in the game, check out our guide on the best healers in Honkai: Star Rail as well.


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Steven Mills
Staff Writer - Steven has been writing in some capacity for over a decade now. He has a passion for story focused RPG's like the Final Fantasy franchise and ARPG's like Diablo and Path of Exile. But really, he's willing to try anything.