Kafka is a 5-star Lightning Nihility character that was available from launch. The tutorial character has become such a fan favorite that quite a lot of people have been saving up their pulls for her. Now, with Version 1.2 on the way, and with Blade's banner out of the way, players can finally try to get her. Should you get her, or plan on getting her, then here's our Honkai Star Rail guide on the best build for Kafka, from her Light Cones to her Relics and more.
Honkai Star Rail Guide – Kafka Light Cones and Relics Build
Do note that this guide is for the currently available Light Cones and Relics. Should new sets of Light Cones and Relics appear in Honkai Star Rail that are better for Kafka, we will be sure to update this guide. Kafka will be available until August 29, 2023. Make sure to get her before then.
Jump To: Abilities | Trace Priority | Light Cones | Relics | Teams
We already talked about Kafka's abilities in a separate article. However, for the purposes of this guide let's go through them quickly.
Kafka is a 5-star Lightning Nihility character. The Path of Nihility focuses on applying debuffs on enemies, making it easier for the player and their team to take them down. Her Basic Attack, Midnight Tumult, deals Lightning DMG to a single enemy. Her Skill, Caressing Moonlight, deals Lightning DMG to an enemy and to those adjacent to it. Additionally, if the enemies hit by the skill currently have DoTs on them, all of them will immediately deal a portion of their original DMG on the enemy.
Her Ultimate, Twilight Trill, deals Lightning DMG to all enemies, with a high chance of applying Shocked on the enemy. It also deals a portion of the DoT DMG from Shocked immediately. Her Talent, Gentle but Cruel, lets Kafka do a follow-up attack when an ally does a Basic ATK. This has a chance to increase the DoT damage inflicted on an enemy. Her Technique, Mercy Is Not Forgiveness, has Kafka immediately attacking an enemy. All enemies then have a high chance of becoming Shocked once the battle starts.
When leveling her Trace, her Ultimate takes priority. This increases the damage she deals to enemies, as well as the DoT damage. The Skill comes next, since like the Ultimate, leveling it up increases the damage it deals, as well s the immediate DoT DMG. The Talent comes next, as it increases her Follow-Up damage as well as the DoT damage increase. Finally, level the Basic ATK.
As for the Major Traces, level Torture first, then Thorns, and finally Plunder.
Patience Is All You Need: Increases DMG dealt by the wearer by 24%/28%/32%/36%/40%. After every attack launched by wearer, their SPD increases by 4.8%/5.6%/6.4%/7.2%/8%, stacking up to 3 times. If the wearer hits an enemy target that is not afflicted by Erode, there is a 100% base chance to inflict Erode to the target. Enemies afflicted with Erode are also considered to be Shocked and will receive Lightning DoT at the start of each turn equal to 60%/70%/80%/90%/100% of the wearer's ATK, lasting for 1 turn(s).
This is Kafka's signature Light Cone and also the one best suited for her. It increases the DMG Kafka deals, increases her speed when she attacks, and also applies Erode, which is a debuff that deals Lightning DoT. This is good for Kafka because of the increased DMG, as well as the additional DoTs. This synergizes with Kafka's ability to increase the damage that DoTs deal.
Fermata: Increases the Break Effect dealt by the wearer by 16%/20%/24%/28%/32%, and increases their DMG to enemies afflicted with Shock or Wind Shear by 16%/20%/24%/28%/32%. This also applies to DoT.
This is the second-best Light Cone for Kafka as it increases the damage she deals, both from her attacks and DoTs, on enemies currently afflicted with Shock. Since Kafka's Ultimate applies Shock on every enemy, this basically allows her to deal increased damage for most of the fight. Partnered with Sampo, who can easily apply Wind Shear, this Light Cone buff will basically have a 100% uptime. It will also increase the Shocked damage the enemy will experience after their Toughness breaks, which is a plus.
Good Night and Sleep Well: For every debuff the target enemy has, the DMG dealt by the wearer increases by 12%/15%/28%/21%/24%, stacking up to 3 time(s). This effect also applies to DoT.
This Light Cone is especially good if the player wants to run a Nihility team. It's easy to apply three debuffs on an enemy, so it'll also be easy to get max stacks on the DMG increase the player will get from attacking rebuffed enemies.
Hidden Shadow: After using Skill, the wearer's next Basic ATK deals Additional DMG equal to 60%/75%/90%/105%/120% of ATK to the target enemy.
This is the F2P Light Cone and the best out of the three for Kafka. You will hopefully not have to use this because other better Light Cones are easy to get, like Fermata. If the player can't, then this Light Cone is a good temporary measure.
4-piece Band of Sizzling Thunder
- Increases Lightning DMG by 10%.
- When the wearer uses their Skill, increases the wearer's ATK by 20% for 1 turn(s).
This is currently the best Relics set for Kafka. The increased Lightning DMG helps in increasing all of her damage. The 4-piece set is also good as you would be weaving your Skill in between turns. It also allows you to buff Kafka before she casts her Ultimate by using her Skill before the Ultimate, increasing its DMG. If you have the Skill points for it, the player can even spam her Skill so that the ATK boost stays up infinitely. Of course, this is very Skill Point hungry, so it's better to just alternate between her skill and Basic ATK.
2-piece Pan-Galactic Commercial Enterprise
- Increases the wearer's Effect Hit Rate by 10%. Meanwhile, the wearer's ATK increases by an amount that is equal to 25% of the current Effect Hit Rate, up to a maximum of 25%.
Even with the new Planar Ornaments coming in Version 1.2, Pan-Galactic Commercial Enterprise is still the best Nihility Planar Ornament set. The increased Effect Hit Rate is helpful, as the debuffs that Kafka can place on enemies are not guaranteed. Increasing her Effect Hit Rate goes a long way in making sure she can reliably apply her debuffs.
For main stats, look for CRIT Rate% on the Chest, ATK% on the Feet, Lightning Damage% on the Sphere, and either Energy Recharge Rate or ATK% on the Rope. For Sub Stats, look for CRIT, ATK%, Effect Hit Rate%, and Break Effect.
Kafka Main DPS team: Kafka, Sampo, Tingyun, Bailu
Kafka and Sampo's synergy are some of the best in the game. Both characters increase the amount of DoT an enemy takes (Kafka with her Talent, Sampo with his Ultimate), and they both can apply a lot of DoTs to enemies. As such, having Kafka and Sampo on the same team is a must. Tingyun is here to make sure that Kafka can use her Ultimate more often, which allows her to apply Shocked on all enemies. The additional damage buff on Tingyun's Skill is also a good plus. Finally, you can put Bailu on the team as a healer, although any healer would do well in this team.
Nihility Team: Kafka, Sampo, Pela, Silver Wolf
Having a full Nihility team may seem like a meme, but it can definitely work. Of course, as mentioned above, Kafka and Sampo must be on the same team, as they bounce off of each other really well. The other members of the team are very flexible. The player can bring Pela for her defense debuffs, or Silver Wolf for her, well, debuffs. Welt's Slow and delays can also help but don't really meld as well with Kafka and Sampo. Of course, you can also replace one of the members of the team with a healer to keep everyone alive. As long as Sampo and Kafka are together, it can work.
That's all for our guide on Kafka's best Light Cones and Relics build in Honkai Star Rail. Again, Kafka will be available for drawing until August 29, 2023. Players interested in getting her must make sure to roll before then. Check out our gaming news articles for the latest in gaming news.
Follow Us
Subscribe