Genshin Impact Ayaka Build Guide

The Genshin Impact Version 2.0 update, also known as “The Immovable God and the Eternal Euthymia,” includes a myriad of new characters to play as. The first of many Inazuma banners, The Heron’s Court, features a character players have been excited for since Genshin Impact’s Beta: Kamisato Ayaka. 

With an upcoming release of July 21st, the official Genshin Impact Twitter account has dropped information on Ayaka and her abilities. This allows players to gauge what role she’ll play in the story and on player’s teams. Being the elegant and eldest daughter of the Yashiro Commission’s Kamisato Clan, Ayaka is adept in the art of the sword and wields a Cryo vision. These combined allow her to dish out an immense amount of damage, especially with the right artifact set, substats, weapons, and talent priority.

Here is TechRaptor’s official guide on how to build the Inazuma noblewoman, Kamisato Ayaka.

Genshin Impact Ayaka Build Guide — Team Role

Being a Cryo vision wielder, Ayaka already has the potential to fall into a high-tier for usability in Genshin Impact, especially in areas like the Spiral Abyss. Characters like Ganyu and Eula are top-tier DPS characters, and given that they also wield Cryo visions, it's no surprise that Ayaka will be as well. Ayaka’s Ascension stat focuses on Critical Damage, which is another attribute of DPS characters, and her base attack is one of the highest base statistics in the game.

With this information in mind, it's evident that Ayaka’s best fit for a role will be as a Main DPS, or a sustained damage dealer. Her high Critical Damage combined with her agile, nimble slashes help her weave through enemies on the battlefield.

Furthermore, Ayaka has the ability to apply her Element to her attacks, allowing strong Cryo-based Elemental reactions like Melt and Superconduct. This consistent application of the Cryo Element helps her fit into a Sub DPS, but it's strongly recommended you consider her as a Main DPS because of her potentially devastating damage output.

Ayaka’s Talents

From an article on the official Genshin Impact blog, it’s clear Kamisato Ayaka demonstrates a keen sense of swordsmanship in her abilities, all of which play into her role as a sustained damage dealer.

Kamisato Art: Kabuki

Ayaka’s Normal Attack. “Perform up to five consecutive attacks.” These come out very quickly and propel Ayaka forward as she slices. The Charged Attack “consumes a certain amount of Stamina to unleash a flurry of sword ki.”

Like many Main DPS characters, it’ll be best to balance Normal Attacks with Charged Attacks to maintain a high DPS with Ayaka.

Kamisato Art: Hyouka

Ayaka’s Elemental Skill. “Summons blooming ice to launch nearby opponents, dealing AoE Cryo DMG.” This Talent is an AoE burst of Cryo damage, which will stagger enemies around Ayaka, apply Cryo, and generate Elemental Particles for Ayaka’s burst.

Since this ability is on a cooldown, Ayaka can use this Talent in addition to her normal attack chain. It can also be used to dispel enemies that surround Ayaka, or apply Cryo to a wide range of foes.

Kamisato Art: Senho

Ayaka’s Alternate Sprint. “Ayaka consumes Stamina and cloaks herself in a frozen dog that moves with her. In Senho form, she moves swiftly upon water.” This dash ability applies Cryo to Ayaka’s weapon and will apply Cryo to any enemies Ayaka reappears near.

This dash is very similar to the Alternate Sprint of Mona, who cloaks herself in water instead of ice. Make sure to use the Senho art conservatively, as Ayaka’s Stamina will be drained when doing so. This Stamina might be needed to do Charged Attacks, which result in more DMG. The Senho art can also be used to traverse the world quickly, including the oceans of the Inazuma Archipelago.

Kamisato Art: Soumetsu

Ayaka’s Elemental Burst. “Summons forth a snowstorm with flawless poise, unleashing a Frostflake Seki no To that moves forward continuously.” This burst has a wide range and deals Cryo DMG upon every enemy that lays within its path. It also explodes at the end of its duration, which results in AoE Cryo DMG being dispelled to enemies.

Since Ayaka should be generating Elemental Particles regularly, Soumetsu can be used relatively liberally. Be sure to group enemies up when activating this Elemental Burst, as it has a wide range that has the potential to damage multiple enemies. Anemo Characters like Venti, Kazuha, and Sucrose have the ability to crowd control enemies.

Best Artifact Sets

When building Ayaka’s Artifacts, it's important to consider her high base attack and Critical Damage ascension. It’d be best to choose an Artifact set that enhances her already exceptional DMG output. Additionally, Ayaka is consistently outputting Cryo DMG, so picking a set that tacks on more Cryo will fit her well. It’ll also be important to make sure the substats on these Artifacts consist of ATK%, Critical Damage, and Critical Damage.

These are three sets that are fitting for Ayaka based upon this information.

Gladiator’s Finale

• A common set for DPS characters. Two pieces of this set grant an 18% boost in Attack Power, while four pieces grant sword users an additional 35% increase in Attack Damage.

• These Artifact pieces can be collected by world bosses as well as the Spiral Abyss.

Blizzard Strayer

• A common set for Cryo characters. Two pieces of this set grant a 15% Cryo Damage boost, while four pieces raise your Critical Rate by 20%. Frozen enemies give characters an additional 20%, raising the Critical Rate to a whopping 40%.

• These Artifact pieces can be collected in the Peak of Vindagnyr Domain, which is found atop the Dragonspine.

Shimenawa’s Reminiscence

• A new set exclusive to the Inazuma region. Two pieces of this set grant an 18% boost in Attack Power, while the four piece bonus is peculiar. When casting an Elemental Skill, 15 Energy will be drained from the character, but their Normal, Charged, and Plunging Attack DMG is increased by 50%.

• These Artifact pieces can be collected in a Domain located within Inazuma.

Best Weapons

Genshin Impact provides a plethora of weapons to choose from for each character, but picking the right one is vital to your build and can be the ultimate decider between average damage output and high amounts of DPS. For Ayaka, focusing on a weapon that increases her Critical Damage, Critical Rate, or Attack % will be the best way to ensure she maximizes her potential.

These are the weapons you should be eyeing down for Ayaka.

Mistsplitter Reforged

• A 5-Star weapon being included in the Inazuma update. This weapon scales in Critical Damage, increasing Ayaka’s by a maximum of 44.

• The sword’s passive ability grants an additional 12% Elemental DMG and adds even more through stack levels, maxing out at 28% Elemental DMG. Ayaka receives a stack when her normal attack deals Elemental DMG and when she unleashes her Elemental Burst.

• Since Ayaka will consistently be outputting Elemental Cryo DMG, this sword is one of the best options to maximize damage output. The sword can be obtained in the Weapon Banner.

The Black Sword

• A 4-Star weapon that can be claimed on the Battle Pass. This weapon scales in Critical Rate, increasing the stat by a maximum of 27%. It also increases Normal and Charged Attack damage by 20%-40%, depending on Refinement level. The Black Sword additionally will regenerate HP by 100% of Ayaka’s ATK when she scores a Critical Hit (this can only happen every five seconds).

• This weapon has been a staple for sword-wielding DPS characters due to its raising of the Critical Rate as well as Normal and Charged Attacks. Since Ayaka’s scaling lines up with these statistics, the weapon fits her well. The presence of self-healing also removes the need to switch off if Ayaka is taking a lot of damage on the field.

Harbinger of Dawn

• A 3-Star weapon that can be found in Wishes. This weapon scales in Critical Damage, increasing the stat by a maximum of 46.9%. As a passive, it also increases Ayaka’s Critical Rate by 28%, depending on Refinement level.

• As a 3-Star weapon, the Harbinger of Dawn is a great free-to-play choice for anyone who hasn’t been fortunate enough to roll a Mistsplitter Reforged or spend money on the Battle Pass for The Black Sword. It is rare for the ability to provide both additional Critical Rate and Critical Damage, but its Base ATK doesn’t raise nearly as high as the former two weapons. Regardless, this weapon will aid Ayaka in her damage output well enough.

Best Team Composition

Ayaka’s constant application of Cryo DMG means she needs a team that synergizes well, enabling Elemental Reactions. Pairing her with a Sub DPS and/or Support that consistently outputs Hydro DMG will aid in her ability to freeze opponents, which can potentially raise Critical Rate if Ayaka has the Shattering Ice Elemental Resonance. This means a Cryo Sub DPS and/or Support is needed. Finally, an Electro user can give the Superconduct Elemental Reaction, which increases Physical Damage.

Ideally, you want to make sure you have one of each of these elements (Hydro, Cryo, and Electro). Since Ayaka doesn’t have any capabilities to heal on her own, healers are important to keep her alive. Shield users also allow Ayaka to continue attacking without being interrupted, so consider those carefully. It is also possible to bring along an Anemo user for Swirl reactions. Characters like Sucrose and Kazuha work for that.

A team for Ayaka can look like this:

• Ayaka (Cryo Main DPS)

• Lisa (Electro Sub DPS)

• Xingqiu (Hydro Utility)

• Diona (Cryo Healer/Shield)

Hydro Teammates

• Mona (5-Star, Catalyst):  Hydro application, distraction Skill.

• Xingqiu (4-Star, Sword): Hydro application, powerful Burst.

• Barbara (4-Star, Catalyst): Hydro application, healing, free-to-play. 

Cryo Teammates

• Qiqi (5-Star, Sword): Provides Resonance and healing.

• Diona (4-Star, Bow): Provides Resonance, healing, and shield.

• Kaeya (4-Star, Sword): Provides Resonance, free-to-play.

Electro Teammates

• Fischl (4-Star, Bow): Electro application.

• Beidou (4-Star, Claymore): Electro application, shield.

• Lisa (4-Star, Catalyst): Electro application, free-to-play.

Anemo Teammates

• Kazuha (5-Star, Sword): Swirl reaction, crowd control.

• Sucrose (4-Star, Catalyst): Swirl reaction, crowd control.

• Traveler (5-Star, Sword): Swirl reaction, free-to-play.

That’s all you’re going to need to know to build Ayaka. With the right Artifact set, weapons, and teammates, Ayaka is shaping up to be one of Genshin Impact’s most powerful DPS characters to date. Make sure to collect any weapons, artifacts, level-up books, and Mora before her eventual release (and save those Primogems!)