Honkai: Star Rail – Acheron Guide: Best Light Cones and Relics

honkai-star-rail-acheron-skill-1

Acheron is probably the most highly-anticipated character for anime game Honkai: Star Rail yet, combining immense visual appeal with a fascinating, mysterious backstory and massive power when it comes to her in-game performance. In short: She’s the full package.

However, even a unit as strong as her needs the right build to function properly – she may have the Path of The Nihility’s inherent connection with debuffs, but that’s the only similarity between her and the other followers of IX. In many aspects, she plays more like a Destruction character.

In this Honkai: Star Rail Acheron build guide, we’ll teach you the basics of how to make the most of this powerful Emanator.

Acheron wields immense power as an Emanator of Nihility, bestowed on her by the Path's Aeon.<p>HoYoverse</p>
Acheron wields immense power as an Emanator of Nihility, bestowed on her by the Path's Aeon.

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Honkai: Star Rail – Acheron: Skills

Acheron does not have an Energy Gauge, making her completely unique in the entire character roster. Instead, her Ultimate can be unleashed after she’s gained a specific amount of stacks of a certain effect. This is facilitated by debuffs being inflicted on enemies, so you’ll want to embed her into a team with fellow Nihility characters.

  • SkillOctobolt Flash: Deals Lightning Damage based on her Attack to a single enemy and a reduced amount to any adjacent targets. In addition, Acheron gains one point of Slashed Dream and inflicts one stack of Crimson Knot on the primary target.

  • UltimateSlashed Dream Cries in Red: Can only be activated once Acheron has nine stacks of Slashed Dream. Triggering this Ultimate allows her to attack with Rainblade three times, dealing Lightning Damage based on her Attack to a target. Each Rainblade can be aimed separately and remove up to three Crimson Knot stacks from a target to increase the damage caused. Stygian Resurge follows up on the Rainblades, affecting every enemy on the field and dealing Lightning Damage based on Acheron’s Attack. This move removes all remaining stacks of Crimson Knot.

  • TalentAtop Rainleaf Hangs Oneness: Allows Acheron’s Ultimate to reduce enemies’ Toughness irrespective of their Weakness Types and lowers their All-Type Resistance. Enables Acheron to obtain one stack of Slashed Dream and inflict one stack of Crimson Knot whenever a debuff is inflicted on an enemy by Acheron himself, one of her allies, or another enemy.

Honkai: Star Rail – Acheron: Light Cones

Nihility characters usually rely on stats like Effect Hit Rate and Break Effect alongside Attack and the Path’s available Light Cones reflect that – making them suboptimal for Acheron. Those with a desire to make the most of her kit will need to obtain her signature Light Cone, Along the Passing Shore.

It provides her with additional Critical Hit Damage and allows her to inflict debuffs. This, in turn, generates stacks of Slashed Dream and Crimson Knot, fueling her Ultimate. This debuff is increasing all damage taken by the affected enemy coming from the Light Cone’s wearer with an additional boost to Ultimate Damage.

  • Best: Along the Passing Shore (5-Star Light Cone)

  • Alternative 5-Star Light Cones:

  • Alternative 4-Star Light Cones:

Acheron's Ultimate is a visual spectacle, completely changing her own appearance.<p>HoYoverse</p>
Acheron's Ultimate is a visual spectacle, completely changing her own appearance.

HoYoverse

Honkai: Star Rail – Acheron: Relics

Acheron benefits from having offensive stats like Attack, Critical Damage, and Critical Hit Rate boosted. In addition, she’ll want as high a Speed stat as possible in order to get into the action. Another consideration for the choice of her equipment is one of her passive abilities, which will provide her with additional stats when there are at least two other Nihility characters on her team.

  • Best Relic Set: Pioneer Diver of Dead Waters – increases damage to debuffed targets

  • Best Planar Ornaments Set: Izumo Gensei and Takama Divine Realm – increases offensive stats when at least one party member follows the same Path as the wearer

Head

Hands

Body

Feet

Planar Sphere

Link Rope

Primary Stat

HP

Attack

Critical Hit Rate % or Critical Damage %

Speed

Lightning Damage %

Attack %

Secondary Stats

Critical Hit Rate %, Critical Hit Damage %, Speed, Attack %

Critical Hit Rate %, Critical Hit Damage %, Speed, Attack %

Critical Hit Rate % or Critical Hit Damage %, Speed, Attack %, Break Effect %

Critical Hit Rate %, Critical Hit Damage %, Attack %, Break Effect %

Critical Hit Rate %, Critical Hit Damage %, Speed, Attack %

Critical Hit Rate %, Critical Hit Damage %, Speed, Break Effect %

Honkai: Star Rail – Acheron: Teams

Putting all of this knowledge together, we’re getting a fresh and exciting way of playing Nihility – less reliant on damage over time and more focused on dealing a massive amount of damage directly. Or, if you’ve got the necessary characters, you can combine both styles.

  • Best Team: Acheron + two Nihility characters + one defensive character

You can pair Acheron up with a couple of purely debuff-focused characters like Silver Wolf and Pela, as they’ll soften up the enemy and speed Acheron’s Ultimate along. However, if you have access to all three Nihility mommies – Acheron, Kafka, and Black Swan – you can put them on the same team and enjoy as Kafka and Black Swan whittle down the enemy with DoT, which in turn fuels Acheron’s destructive powers. Add one healer or sustain to that and you’ve got a very powerful combo going.

Acheron and Black Swan aren't just great together as dance partners.<p>HoYoverse</p>
Acheron and Black Swan aren't just great together as dance partners.

HoYoverse

Related: Original Pokémon Anime Opening Remade For Honkai: Star Rail By Fan