Advanced Guide to Hu Tao in Genshin Impact

Hu Tao, the Pyro main DPS from Genshin Impact, has a dynamic playstyle centered around her Elemental Skill and high single-target damage.

This guide will cover Hu Tao's abilities, optimal builds, team compositions, and more.

Let's dive in!

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Advanced Guide to Hu Tao: Best Builds and Team Compositions

Abilities and Playstyle

Elemental Skill: Guide to Afterlife

Converts Hu Tao's attack damage to Pyro and increases it based on her max HP.

It consumes a part of her current HP.

Central to her kit, players must use this skill to enter her high-damage state.

Managing her HP is crucial, as higher damage output is achieved at lower HP levels (below 50%).

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Elemental Burst: Spirit Soother

Deals AoE Pyro damage, with increased damage at lower HP.

Also provides healing based on the number of enemies hit.

Balances risk and reward.

Used for dealing burst damage and as a 'safety net' for healing, especially when Hu Tao's HP is critically low.

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Normal and Charged Attacks

Hu Tao's normal attacks are standard, but her charged attacks become crucial during her Elemental Skill state.

Charged attacks are the primary source of damage when her skill is active, often used in quick succession for maximum DPS.

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Passive Talents

Flutter By: Increases CRIT Rate of other party members after the Elemental Skill ends.

Blood Blossom Effect: Adds a damage-over-time effect to enemies hit by charged attacks during her Elemental Skill's active phase.

Sanguine Rouge: Increases Hu Tao's Pyro DMG Bonus when her HP is below or equal to 50%.

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Talent Priority

Normal Attack

Hu Tao's damage output primarily comes from her charged attacks during her Elemental Skill's active phase.

Leveling this talent increases the damage of both normal and charged attacks significantly, essential for boosting her DPS.

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Elemental Skill

Converts attack damage to Pyro and increases it based on Hu Tao's Max HP, while reducing her HP.

Leveling this talent increases the ATK bonus she receives, which is crucial since this skill is the core of her DPS rotation.

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Elemental Burst

Deals AoE Pyro damage, scaling with Hu Tao's current HP.

Also heals her based on the number of enemies hit.

While it provides significant burst damage and healing, its priority is slightly lower than her Normal Attack and Elemental Skill since it's used less frequently for damage output.

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Best Artifacts for Hu Tao

Crimson Witch of Flames Set

Enhancing Hu Tao's Pyro damage and boosting reaction damage like Vaporize, which is a crucial part of her kit.

Ideal for a traditional DPS build focusing on maximizing Pyro damage.

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Shimenawa's Reminiscence Set

Boosting Hu Tao's Normal and Charged Attack damage, especially effective for players who focus on her Charged Attack playstyle.

Suitable for players who can manage Hu Tao's Energy efficiently, ensuring consistent use of her Elemental Burst.

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Emblem of Severed Fate Set

Balancing between Burst DMG and Energy Recharge, particularly useful if Hu Tao's Elemental Burst is a significant part of your playstyle.

Recommended for players who frequently use Hu Tao's Elemental Burst for damage and healing.

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Main Stats Priority

• ‍Sands: HP% (Hu Tao's attack power scales with her max HP). Elemental Mastery as alternative (Useful for amplifying reaction damage, especially if she’s often triggering Vaporize).‍
• Goblet: Pyro DMG Bonus (Directly boosts her Pyro damage, which is a large portion of her output).‍
• Circlet: CRIT Rate or CRIT DMG (Choose based on which one balances your CRIT ratio closer to 1:2). Aim for a 1:2 ratio of CRIT Rate to CRIT DMG for optimal damage.

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Sub Stats Priority

• ‍CRIT Rate & CRIT DMG: Essential for any DPS character to amplify damage.‍
• HP%: Since Hu Tao’s abilities scale with her HP, additional HP% increases her overall damage.‍
• Elemental Mastery: Important for enhancing the damage of reactions like Vaporize, which Hu Tao frequently triggers.‍
• Energy Recharge: Beneficial but secondary; it helps to use her Elemental Burst more frequently.

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Weapon Choices

5-Star Weapons

Staff of Homa (Signature Weapon)

Boosts CRIT DMG significantly.

Increases HP and provides an ATK bonus based on Max HP, synergizing perfectly with Hu Tao’s kit.

Even more effective when Hu Tao's HP is below 50%.

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Primordial Jade Winged-Spear

Provides CRIT Rate and increases ATK on hit.

While not as optimal as Staff of Homa, it still offers significant damage output.

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Skyward Spine

Increases Energy Recharge and CRIT Rate.

Good for more frequent use of Elemental Burst but less focused on maximizing Hu Tao's specific damage mechanics.

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4-Star Weapons

Dragon's Bane

Increases DMG against opponents affected by Hydro or Pyro, which is ideal for Vaporize reactions.

Offers Elemental Mastery, enhancing reaction damage.

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Deathmatch (Battle Pass Weapon)

Increases CRIT Rate.

Provides an ATK or DEF bonus depending on the number of enemies around, useful for Hu Tao’s close-range combat style.

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Blackcliff Pole

Boosts CRIT DMG.

Increases ATK after defeating an enemy, suitable for scenarios with multiple foes.

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F2P Options

White Tassel

Increases CRIT Rate.

Provides a boost to Normal Attack DMG, which benefits Hu Tao’s charged attack playstyle.

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Prototype Starglitter

Increases Energy Recharge and offers an Elemental Skill DMG bonus.

A decent option if you’re focusing on frequent Burst usage.

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Choosing the Right Weapon

Staff of Homa remains the top choice for maximizing Hu Tao's potential.

Dragon’s Bane is highly effective for Vaporize comps.

Free-to-play options like White Tassel are surprisingly effective for a DPS-centric build.

Balance weapon choice with your team comp and playstyle. For frequent Burst use, consider options with Energy Recharge.

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Team Compositions

Vaporize Focus

Hu Tao - Xingqiu/Yelan - Zhongli - Sucrose/Kazuha

• ‍Xingqiu/Yelan: Provides consistent Hydro application for Vaporize reactions.‍
• Zhongli: Offers strong shields for protection, enabling Hu Tao to maintain low HP safely.‍
• Sucrose/Kazuha: Boosts elemental damage through Swirl and Elemental Mastery buffs.

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Mono Pyro with Anemo Support

Hu Tao - Xiangling - Bennett - Kazuha/Sucrose

• ‍Xiangling: Increases overall Pyro DPS and benefits from Pyro resonance.‍
• Bennett: Offers healing and an ATK boost from his Elemental Burst.‍
• Kazuha/Sucrose: Enhances elemental reactions and groups enemies.

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Double Geo for Shield and Resonance

Hu Tao - Zhongli - Albedo - Xingqiu/Yelan

• ‍Zhongli and Albedo: Provide strong shields (Zhongli) and consistent off-field DPS (Albedo).‍
• Xingqiu/Yelan: Ensures regular Hydro application for Vaporize.

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Freeze Composition

Hu Tao - Ganyu/Diona - Mona - Venti/Sucrose

• ‍Ganyu/Diona: Cryo application for Freeze, with Diona also offering healing.‍
• Mona: Amplifies damage with her Burst and Hydro application.
• ‍Venti/Sucrose: Crowd control and elemental reaction amplification.

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Constellations Impact

C1: Crimson Bouquet

Doesn't consume stamina when using charged attacks within the Paramita Papilio state activated by Guide to Afterlife.

Greatly improves mobility and DPS output, as Hu Tao can perform charged attacks more frequently without worrying about stamina depletion.

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C2: Ominous Rainfall

Increases the Blood Blossom damage by an amount equal to 10% of Hu Tao's Max HP when Guide to Afterlife's effects are active.

Enhances Hu Tao's DPS as her Blood Blossom deals additional damage based on her high HP pool.

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C4: Garden of Eternal Rest

Upon defeating an enemy affected by Blood Blossom, all nearby allies (excluding Hu Tao) gain 12% CRIT Rate for 15s.

Enhances team synergy by boosting allies' critical rate, beneficial in parties where Hu Tao is not the sole DPS.

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C6: Butterfly's Embrace

Triggers when Hu Tao's HP drops below 25%, or when she suffers a lethal strike: Hu Tao will not fall as a result of the damage sustained.

Additionally, for the next 10s, her CRIT Rate increases by 100%, and CRIT DMG increases by 50%.

This effect triggers automatically when Hu Tao has 1 HP left. 60s cooldown.

Provides a significant survival and damage boost, making her a high-risk, high-reward character.

The massive increase in CRIT Rate and DMG transforms her into an extremely powerful DPS for a short duration.

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Playstyle and Strategies

Managing HP for Maximum DPS

Hu Tao's Elemental Skill, Guide to Afterlife, converts her HP into attack power.

The lower her HP (without dropping below 50%), the higher her damage output.

Carefully manage her HP to hover around or just below 50% for optimal damage.

Use her Elemental Burst for healing if her HP drops too low.

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Charged Attack Focus

Hu Tao's charged attacks are her primary source of damage, especially when under the effects of her Elemental Skill.

Master the technique of animation cancelling her charged attacks with a dash or jump to increase DPS efficiency.

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Elemental Reaction Synergy

Pairing Hu Tao with Hydro characters like Xingqiu or Childe maximizes damage through Vaporize reactions.

Alternatively, teaming up with Cryo characters for Melt reactions is also effective, although Vaporize generally yields higher damage.

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Final Thoughts on Hu Tao

Hu Tao is a versatile and powerful DPS character in Genshin Impact.

Understanding her kit, optimizing her build, and synergizing with the right team can unleash her full potential, making her a top-tier choice in various combat situations.