HoYoverse announced the Honkai Star Rail 1.5 banners during the RPG’s latest livestream, and they feature some pretty big shakeups to the character roster. Honkai Star Rail goes live on Nov. 15, 2023, and it looks like the 1.4 banner rerun is a new standard now, as Silver Wolf makes a comeback in the second half. We’re getting two new 5-star characters – a healer and a physical Erudition fighter – and a new 4-star support unit, ahead of version 1.6’s Ruan Mei. Unlike with Genshin Impact, HoYoverse announced the 4-star characters running alongside 1.5’s newcomers as well, though they’re a bit on the underwhelming side.
Honkai Star Rail 1.5 banners - Huohuo
The first phase goes live on Nov. 15, 2023, with 5-star Abundance character Huohuo. Accompanying her are:
- Dan Heng (Wind, Hunt)
- Arlan (Electric, Destruction)
- Serval (Electric, Erudition)
Huohuo seems like a pretty big deal, a blend of Tingyun and Bailu. Her skill heals one target and adjacent allies and removes debuffs, while her ultimate increases energy regeneration and applies an attack buff. She also has a talent that activates a healing effect on allies when they use their ultimate or their turn begins.
Dan Heng is a decent choice, if a little underpowered, and Arlan takes a lot of babysitting to perform well. Serval is the best of the 4-star bunch here, especially if you have Kafka and can trigger additional Shock effects from her.
Honkai Star Rail 1.5 banners - Argenti and Hanya
The second phase should go live on Dec. 6, 2023, and it features another dual banner. The new guy on the block is Argenti, a 5-star Erudition character who uses physical attacks to wear foes down. Silver Wolf – a 5-star Nihility character – headlines the other banner.
With them are:
- Hanya (Harmony, Physical)
- Lynx (Abundance, Quantum)
- Asta (Harmony, Fire)
Argenti may seem a bit standard at first, but HoYoverse is experimenting with a new feature on him. His attacks power up his critical rate and energy regeneration, and he can also choose how much energy to pour into his ultimate – sort of like Imbibitor Lunae’s skill changing depending on how many skill points you use.
Despite following the Nihility path, Silver Wolf is more of a support character. Her attacks inject bugs that inflict minor strength, speed, and defense debuffs on foes, and her skill adds a weakness that matches one of your party’s elements. She’s excellent for mono-element teams and for wearing tough foes down.
The mark that Hanya applies to foes lets your allies regenerate more skill points when they attack, and her ultimate raises one ally’s attack. Lynx is a capable single-target healer, and Asta helps buff your party’s attack and speed.
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF
