Following the second rerun of Childe, comes one of the most anticipated character reruns since her release: Hu Tao. It seems as though miHoYo doesn’t care about re-releasing characters according to their release order, as she arrives next banner ahead of Albedo and Ganyu. The reason why she’s incredibly sought-after is her phenomenal DPS, which makes her one of the top meta characters in the game. her DPS comes at a cost, however, and players who aren’t mechanically skilled might have trouble using her. If you’re still trying to decide whether to pull for our resident prankster or not, this article will be your guide.

Why you should pull for Hu Tao

Hu Tao deals insane DPS–that’s only it. Kidding, you’ve been pranked! She also has a couple of unique quirks and properties which only she possesses. Having the Pyro element allows her to have great synergy with strong elemental reactions, like Vaporise and Melt, while making use of the damage-boosting Resonance. Being a polearm user has its benefits too, like having Dragon’s Bane or Deathmatch as amazing 4-star weapon options. Here are a couple more reasons why you should pull for Hu Tao:

  1. You need a DPS character to carry you into endgame content
  2. You don’t have a strong Pyro character yet (No, not Amber)
  3. You like Hu Tao’s character and/or design
  4. You want to challenge your skills with her technical gameplay

Why you should skip the banner

For a character like Hu Tao, her DPS doesn’t come free. She always wants to be under 50% HP to get bonus damage from her talent, and if you’re not careful, the HP penalty of her Elemental Skill can get unsuspecting players killed. The proficient player also requires a good grasp of animation canceling and stamina management, which is not easy to learn for beginner players. Furthermore, she is extremely sub-optimal without Xingqiu’s Burst. If you have Xingqiu as a core unit in another team (like Raiden or National Teams), you’ll be in a zugzwang on which team to put him in. Here are more reasons why you should skip Hu Tao’s banner:

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  1. You do not like Hu Tao’s character and/or design
  2. DPS characters with significant downtimes are not your thing
  3. Xingqiu is being used by your other favorite teams
  4. You have another strong Pyro DPS character
  5. You think you don’t have the skill to perform Hu Tao’s dangerous and technical play style

Hu Tao is an interesting character with great strengths and often demanding weaknesses, and those aspects allow players to express their skill and knowledge in the game. Since her release, Hu Tao has stayed at the top of the meta ladder, along with Ganyu and Ayaka, which is a good testament to her overall design. She won’t be appearing again for quite some time, so think carefully about the banner before it expires.

If you’re interested in how to build Hu Tao, here’s an in-depth guide, including her preferred weapons, artifact sets, and team compositions.