Honkai: Star Rail is an RPG character collector game developed by miHoYo, the same people behind Genshin Impact and Honkai: Impact. Here, players experience an adventure across the cosmos as they visit distant planets in an attempt to save each of them from calamities caused by “Stellarons”.
Along our journey on the Astral Express, we’ll meet memorable and colorful playable characters who each have their own parts to play in our story. Each of these characters can be tailored to a degree via Light Cones and Relics.
Light Cones can be thought of as Weapons in Genshin Impact. Each Light Cone comes with its own special mechanics like increasing a stat or making characters more likely to be targeted.
Relics, on the other hand, can be a lot more complicated since they come in varying rarities, sets, and have different methods of acquisition.
This article aims to guide you through the many nuances that come with Relics in Honkai: Star Rail. Read on to learn exactly what relics are, how to get them, and who to equip them to!
Table of Contents
What Are Relics
Relics are Honkai: Star Rail’s version of armor or equipment found in other games. These relics are essentially divided into two sub-sets; Cavern Relics and Planar Ornaments.
Relics
Relics are the base form of these items that you will get access to as soon as you hit Trailblaze Level 14. These Relics come in three different rarities and are equipped in either the Head, Gloves, Boots, and Body slots!
Relic Sets and Best Characters
| Relic Set | 2 Piece Effect | 4 Piece Effect | Best Characters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hunter of Glacial Forest | Increases Ice Damage by 10% | After the wearer uses their Ultimate, their Critical Damage increases by 25% for 2 turns. | Yanqing, Herta |
| Eagle of Twilight Line | Increases Wind Damage by 10% | After the wearer uses their Ultimate, their action is Advanced Forward by 25%. | Dan Heng, Blade, Sampo, Bronya |
| Champion of Streetwise Boxing | Increases Physical Damage by 10%. | After the wearer attacks or is hit, their Attack increases by 5% for the rest of the battle. This effect can stack up to 5 times. | Trailblazer (Physical), Sushang, Clara |
| Thief of Shooting Meteor | Increases Break Effect by 16%. | Increases the wearer’s Break Effect by 16%. When the wearer inflicts Weakness Break on an enemy, regenerates 3 Energy. | |
| Passerby of Wandering Cloud | Increases Outgoing Healing by 10%. | At the start of battle, immediately regenerates 1 Skill Point. | Natasha, Bailu |
| Musketeer of Wild Wheat | Attack increases by 12%. | The wearer’s Speed increases by 6% and Basic Attack Damage increases by 10%. | Pela, Tingyun |
| Guard of Wuthering Snow | Reduces Damage taken by 8%. | At the beginning of the turn, if the wearer’s HP is equal to or less than 50%, restores HP equal to 8% of their Max HP and regenerates 5 energy. | Gepard |
| Genius of Brilliant Stars | Increases Quantum Damage by 10%. | When the wearer deals Damage to the target enemy, ignores 10% Defense. If the target enemy has Quantum Weakness, the wearer additionally ignores 10% Defense. | Seele, Silver Wolf, Qingque |
| Knight of Purity Palace | Increases Defense by 15%. | Increases the max Damage that can be absorbed by the Shield created by the wearer by 20%. | Gepard, March 7th, Trailblazer (Fire) |
| Band of Sizzling Thunder | Increases Lightning Damage by 10% | When the wearer uses their Skill, increases the wearer’s Attack by 20% for 1 turn. | Jing Yuan, Serval, Arlan |
| Firesmith of Lava-Forging | Increases Fire Damage by 10%. | Increases the wearer’s Skill Damage by 12%. After unleashing Ultimate, increases the wearer’s Fire Damage by 12% for the next attack. | Himeko, Asta, Hook |
| Wastelander of Banditry Desert | Increases Imaginary Damage by 10%. | When attacking debuffed enemies, the wearer’s Critical Rate increases by 10%, and their Critical Damage increases by 20% against Imprisoned enemies. | Welt |
Planar Ornaments
Planar Ornaments are relics equipped in two other slots that you unlock after completing the quest “No Time For Me, My Friend”, which is subsequently unlocked once you hit Trailblaze Level 24. These Planar Ornaments are either a Rope or an Orb!
Planar Ornament Sets
| Planar Ornament Set | 2 Piece Effect | Best Characters |
|---|---|---|
| Space Sealing Station | Increases the wearer’s Attack by 12%. When the wearer’s Speed reaches 120 or higher, the wearer’s Attack increases by an extra 12%. | Himeko, Seele, Serval, Sampo, Dan Heng, Hook, Sushang, Arlan, Yanqing, Trailblazer (Physical), Herta, Clara |
| Fleet of the Ageless | Increases the wearer’s Max HP by 12%. When the wearer’s Speed reaches 120 or higher, all allies’ Attack increases by 8%. | Tingyun, Natasha, Bailu, Bronya |
| Pan-Galactic Commercial Enterprise | Increases the wearer’s Effect Hit Rate by 10%. Meanwhile, the wearer’s Attack increases by an amount that is equal to 25% of the current Effect Hit Rate, up to a maximum of 25%. | Welt, Pela |
| Belobog of the Architects | Increases the wearer’s Defense by 15%. When the wearer’s Effect Hit Rate is 50% or higher, the wearer gains an extra 15% Defense. | Gepard, March 7th, Trailblazer (Fire) |
| Celestial Differentiator | Increases the wearer’s Critical Damage by 16%. When the wearer’s current Critical Damage reaches 120% or higher, after entering battle, the wearer’s Critical Rate increases by 60% until the end of their first attack, | |
| Inert Salsotto | Increases the wearer’s Critical Rate by 8%. When the wearer’s current Critical Rate reaches 50% or higher, the wearer’s Ultimate and follow-up attack Damage increases by 15%. | Jing Yuan |
| Talia: Kingdom of Banditry | Increases the wearer’s Break Effect by 16%. When the wearer’s Speed reaches 145 or higher, the wearer’s Break effect increases by an extra 20%. | |
| Sprightly Vonwacq | Increases the wearer’s Energy Regeneration Rate by 5%. When the wearer’s Speed reaches 120 or higher, the wearer’s action is Advanced Forward by 40% immediately upon entering battle. | Asta |
How to Get Relics
Obtain Relics From Caverns of Corrosion Calyxes
Relics are prevalently farmed within the Caverns of Corrosion Calyxes. Each attempt at a Calyx will cost you 40 units of Trailblaze Power/Energy.
Below we’ve included a table that displays all the Caverns of Corrosion currently available in the game as well as their Relic Set rewards and their locations!
| Cavern of Corrosion | Relic Set Reward 1 | Relic Set Reward 2 | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Path of Gelid Wind | Hunter of Glacial Forest | Eagle of Twilight Line | Storage Zone, Herta Space Station |
| Path of Jabbing Punch | Champion of Streetwise Boxing | Thief of Shooting Meteor | Silvermane Guard Restricted Zone, Jarilo-VI |
| Path of Drifting | Passerby of Wandering Cloud | Musketeer of Wild Wheat | Corridor of Fading Echoes, Jarilo-VI |
| Path of Providence | Guard of Wuthering Snow | Genius of Brilliant Stars | Everwinter Hill, Jarilo-VI |
| Path of Holy Hymn | Knight of Purity Palace | Band of Sizzling Thunder | Cloudford, The Xianzhou Luofu |
| Path of Conflagration | Firesmith of Lava-Forging | Wastelander of Banditry Desert | Stargazer Navalia, The Xianzhou Luofu |
Obtain Relics From Echoes of War
Relics can also be randomly rewarded by clearing either of the two weekly world bosses within the Echoes of War.
Currently, there are only two different stages in the Echoes of War and both stages are revisits of Bosses previously defeated in the story.
Obtain Relics From Operation Briefing
The Operation Briefing is Honkai: Star Rail’s version of tutorial missions. Each “level” of the Operation Briefing contains a set of objectives that players must accomplish before it rewards them.
These rewards vary from Stellar Jades to Exp and Gold materials, with some challenges awarding a full set of Relics!
If you’re only starting out in the game, focus on clearing the objectives within the Operation Briefing since these challenges don’t necessarily require you to use Trailblaze Power to complete them!
Pompom Awards Relics
Shortly after boarding the Star Rail for the first time, Pompom will call you over and reward you for every Trailblaze Level you’ve managed to reach.
Arguably, the most sought-after Level Reward that Pompom has to offer is the consumable known as Fuel.
However, if you’re starved for Relics, Pompom rewards Relics at the following Trailblaze Levels:
| Trailblaze Level | Level Reward |
|---|---|
| 17 | Knight’s Forgiving Casque, Knight’s Silent Oath Ring, Knight’s Solemn Breastplate, Knight’s Iron Boots of Order |
| 26 | Passerby’s Rejuvenated Wooden Hair Stick, Passerby’s Stygian Hiking Boots |
| 27 | Passerby’s Roaming Dragon Bracer, Passerby’s Ragged Embroided Coat |
| 32 | Knight’s Forgiving Casque |
| 33 | Knight’s Solemn Breastplate |
| 34 | Knight’s Silent Oath Ring |
| 35 | Knight’s Iron Boots of Order |
| 44 | Knight’s Forgiving Casque |
| 47 | Knight’s Solemn Breastplate |
How to Get Planar Ornaments
Obtain Planar Ornaments From Simulated Universe
Unlike regular Relics, Planar Ornaments can only be obtained from the Simulated Universe. This game mode is unlocked early on as part of the story.
Once you hit Trailblaze Level 25, you will be eligible to attempt the harder worlds within the Simulated Universe, with subsequent difficulties unlocking at higher Equilibrium levels!
Below we’ve created a table of all the currently available Worlds within the Simulated Universe game mode in which you can farm Planar Ornaments.
| World | Planar Ornament Set Reward 1 | Planar Ornament Set Reward 2 |
|---|---|---|
| World 3 | Space Sealing Station | Fleet of the Ageless |
| World 4 | Talia: Kingdom of Banditry | Sprightly Vonwacq |
| World 5 | Pan-Galactic Commercial Enterprise | Celestial Differentiator |
| World 6 | Belobog of the Architects | Inert Salsotto |
How to Upgrade Relics
Like in Genshin: Impact, Relics in Honkai: Star Rail comes in varying star ratings ranging from 2-Stars all the way up to 5-Stars. When you’re starting out feel free to equip any of the free relic sets you naturally receive from progressing the game.
Once you’ve reached a high enough Equilibrium level, you will want to focus solely on upgrading 5-Star Relics, as these will provide the highest stat boosts to your characters.
How to Determine If A Relic Is Worth Upgrading
Step 1: Choose Your Main Stat
Each Relic can have an associated Main Stat that depends on the slot it fits into. Some Relics like Head and Gloves can only roll HP or ATK while others can roll a variety of different stat boosts.
Take the following Boots. They belong to the same Relic set but have different Main Stats.
You will want to choose which Relics you want to equip by first looking at the main stat that they rolled with before upgrading it further. Below we’ve included a table showing all the possible main stat rolls for each Relic.
| Helm | Gloves | Boots | Body | Link Rope | Planar Sphere |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HP | ATK | ATK% | ATK% | ATK% | ATK% |
| DEF% | DEF% | DEF% | DEF% | ||
| HP% | HP% | HP% | HP% | ||
| Speed | Crit Rate% | Energy Recharge% | Fire DMG Boost% | ||
| Break Effect% | Crit DMG% | Break Effect% | Lightning DMG Boost% | ||
| Effect Hit Rate% | Wind DMG Boost% | ||||
| Outgoing Healing Boost% | Ice DMG Boost% | ||||
| Imaginary DMG Boost% | |||||
| Quantum DMG Boost% | |||||
| Physical DMG Boost% |
Step 2: Choose Your Sub-Stats
Your Sub-Stats are the secondary stats that roll randomly whenever you acquire Relics. Pieces from the same set that have the same main stat can have different sets of sub-stats.
For DPS characters like Seele, you’ll want to prioritize subs like Critical and Attack. Healers like Bailu and Natasha will want subs like HP, while Preservation characters like Gepard and March will want Defensive subs.
Step 3: Upgrade Your Chosen Relic
Once you’ve chosen a specific relic to enhance, upgrade it slowly instead of rushing it towards max level in order to save as many resources as possible when trying to roll for the perfect relic.
Relics can have a maximum of four different subs with each one having a random chance of being boosted at specific relic level thresholds.
Namely, once you upgrade your relic to levels three, six, nine, twelve, and fifteen. If you obtain your relic with only three subs, you will obtain your 4th sub once you hit relic level 3. This can easily be identified by checking if the “New” icon is present when upgrading your relics.
If you upgrading a relic that already has 4 subs, each of the thresholds will upgrade an existing sub instead of adding a new one.
You will want to first check if the desired sub-stat was enhanced at relic level 3, from which you can decide if you want to continue upgrading the specific relic or not.
If you enhanced the sub-stat you wanted, then keep upgrading til relic level 6 to see if the next enhancement is still a sub-stat that you desire.
If you dislike the sub-stat that was enhanced, you can decide if you want to keep upgrading the same relic, or try again once you have a different relic to upgrade.