Nilou was one of the first characters we meet in Sumeru, and she will be playable in Genshin Impact Version 3.1. Nilou's gameplay centers around Burst, but role aside, her animations are as graceful as she is.
Everything below was taken from the Beta build of Genshin Impact, and was not released through any official channels. This may not represent Nilou when she releases.
In case you missed it, first check out Nilou's Skills, Talents, Constellations, and more. She is a 5-star Hydro Sword character. Her kit plays around Bloom, the Elemental Reaction between Dendro and Hydro.
Here are the descriptions of Nilou's Normal Attack, Elemental Skill, and Elemental Burst.
Normal Attack: Dance of the Bowstring Moon
Normal Attack
- Performs up to 3 consecutive sword strikes.
Charged Attack
- Consumes a certain amount of Stamina to perform a twirling slash.
Plunging Attack
- Plunges from mid-air to strike the ground below, damaging opponents along the path and dealing AoE DMG upon impact.
Elemental Skill: Dance of the Seven Realms
Enters the Pirouette state, dealing Hydro DMG to nearby opponents based on Nilou’s Max HP.
While she is in the Pirouette state, Nilou’s Normal Attacks and Elemental Attacks will cause her to enter the Sword Dance and Whirling Steps stances respectively, causing DMG she deals to be converted to Hydro DMG that cannot be overridden and that is considered Elemental Skill DMG.
In these stances, Nilou’s third dance step will end Pirouette, and has the following effects:
- Sword Dance: unleashes a watery moon that deals Hydro DMG to opponents it touches and grants Nilou the Lunar Prayer effect. This effect converts Nilou’s Normal Attacks into Sword Dance techniques, and her final hit will unleash a watery moon.
- Whirling Steps: Nilou unleashes a hurtling Water Wheel that deals AoE Hydro DMG and creates a Tranquility aura that follows your active character around and applies Wet to opponents within its AoE.
Nilou is unable to perform Charged Attacks when under the effect of Pirouette or Lunar Prayer. These effects will be removed once she leaves the field or exits these states.
“Daintily her toes touch the water’s face, and the light that ripples forth equals even the seven heavens.”
Elemental Burst: Dance of the Lotus: Distant Dreams, Listening Spring
Begins the dance of faraway dreams and springs that hear, causing a Lotus of Distant Waters to bloom, dealing AoE Hydro DMG based on Nilou’s Max HP and applying the Lingering Aeon effect to all opponents hit.
After an interval, opponents affected by Lingering Aeon will take Hydro DMG.
“We have never witnessed that distant dream, but this dance can bring it to life.”
Nilou Gameplay and Animations
We know Nilou as the dancer of Zubayr Theater, and her gameplay and animations are consistent with her occupation.
Her first idle animation shows her bringing out a slice of pie and taking a nibble, ending with Nilou looking extremely satisfied. For her second idle, she flows like water and does a little graceful dance.
Her Normal Attack animations seem like nothing special at first, but the subtleties in her movements clearly show the influence of her passion for dancing.
Nilou strikes a pose with her arms when her Elemental Skill is activated, which also changes her Normal Attack animations. This has two different sets of animations depending on which attack she does, but all are equally elegant. For those eager to min-max her damage, a recent update in the Beta now allows Nilou to cancel the animation of the third attack with a dodge.
The Elemental Burst's animation is short, but begins with a top down view of Nilou and zones in on her profile as she strikes a pose. There are accompanying instruments in the background after the cast. Enemies hit by the explosion of the water flower are marked faintly by Hydro particles which also explode after a delay.
Nilou is intended to be a damage dealer in a team, and can fill the role of both a DPS and a sub-DPS. The clip below showcases her in a Bloom-focused team with Kokomi, Dendro Traveler, and Collei.
https://twitter.com/Plusleleaks/status/1563193204413186048
The rotation done in this clip is as follows:
- Nilou
- Burst, Skill, Skill, Skill
- Kokomi
- Skill
- Dendro Traveler
- Burst, Skill
- Collei
- Skill, Burst
- Kokomi
- Burst, Normal Attack
- Repeat
Nilou's Bountiful Cores talent is designed such that she doesn't have to be involved in the Bloom reaction; her presence in the party alone allows Bountiful Cores to generate.
Here is another clip, showing the interaction between Nilou and Collei. Note that the damage numbers in this clip are inaccurate.
This doesn't mean she's limited to Bloom comps however, her high scaling and reliable Hydro application allows for her to be placed in other team compositions.
For more Genshin Impact 3.1 news, click here.
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