The adorably spoopy addition to the Genshin Impact lineup returns for her first rerun. It’s been far too long for Hu Tao, but she’s finally back. She is easily the best Pyro Main DPS in Genshin Impact, and a relatively easy to use character in combat.
Hu Tao’s damage relies on her Elemental Skill and Normal Attack. Increasing her Elemental Skill Talent will affect her Blood Blossom DMG, while increasing her Normal Attack Talent will affect her damage during the Paramita Papilio state.
Genshin Impact: How to Ascend Hu Tao | Genshin Impact: Alhaitham Talent Guide | Genshin Impact: Xiao Talent Guide
Prioritize your resources on enhancing these two Talents simultaneously, then go back and level up her Elemental Burst. If you need additional healing, just add a Healer or Shield Support to your team.
Combat Talents
Normal Attack – Secret Spear of Wangsheng
Hu Tao can perform up to 6 consecutive spear strikes. Again, you want to level up this Talent for when you use her Elemental Skill. Her Skill will activate the Paramita Papilio state, which converts all attacks to Pyro DMG. Also, using her Charged Attack will apply the Blood Blossom effect to any enemies she hits.
Despite being an aspect of her Elemental Skill, the damage from Normal Attacks under the Paramita Papilio state still scale from Hu Tao’s Normal Attack Talent.
Elemental Skill – Guide to Afterlife
Upon activation, Hu Tao consumes a portion of her HP to knock enemies back and enter the Paramita Papilio state. You won’t really notice the crowd disbursement when using this.
In the Paramita Papilio state, Hu Tao’s ATK increases based on her Max HP at the time of entering the state. This ATK bonus can’t exceed 400% of Hu Tao’s Base ATK. Basically, you can quadruple Hu Tao’s total ATK just by activating her Skill.
Paramita Papilio converts all attack DMG to Pyro DMG. This cannot be overridden. The state ends when its duration runs out or Hu Tao leaves the field. To get the most out of Hu Tao’s Pyro DMG, make sure to apply another Element first before using Hu Tao’s Skill. Or, activate a Skill that applies an Element when a character is off the field, then switch to Hu Tao. Barbara’s Skill would work well in this scenario: she applies Hydro off-field, so subsequently using Hu Tao’s Skill would inflict Vaporize throughout Hu Tao’s Skill duration.
Hu Tao’s Charged Attacks apply the Blood Blossom effect to enemies she hits. Finally, Hu Tao’s resistance to interruption increases. Together, this means that Hu Tao has a better chance of applying the Blood Blossom to harder hitting enemies, since her Charged Attack will gain the interruption resistance buff. She won’t be knocked down halfway through performing her Charged Attack.
The Blood Blossom deals Pyro DMG to affect enemies every 4 seconds. Blood Blossom DMG scales off of Elemental Skill DMG. Each enemy can only be affected by one Blood Blossom at a time. This is great for passive damage, especially if you need to swap Hu Tao out before her Skill ends.
Elemental Burst – Spirit Soother
Hu Tao summons a spirit that deals Pyro DMG in a large AoE. Every time Spirit Soother hits an enemy, Hu Tao regenerates a percentage of her Max HP. This can be triggered up to 5 times, based on the number of enemies the Burst hits. If Hu Tao’s HP is less than or equal to 50% when an enemy is hit, both the DMG inflicted to the enemy and Hu Tao’s HP Regeneration increases.
To break that down: Hu Tao creates a large area that inflicts Pyro DMG on the enemies inside of it. Every time an enemy within this area receives DMG, Hu Tao heals a percentage of her HP. She can be healed up to 5 times. To get the most out of her healing, you want to make sure at least 5 enemies get caught in the Burst. If Hu Tao has low HP, her Burst will inflict more damage than if her HP is full. The same goes for her healing. This only applies when Hu Tao is at or below 50% of her Max HP.
Because you won’t rely on Hu Tao’s Burst for damage, don’t level up the Burst Talent before the other two. If you find that you need more healing for Hu Tao to recover from her Skill, then add a Healer or Shield Support to your team.
Passive Talents
1st Ascension – Flutter By
When the Paramita Papilio state ends, all party members receive a 12% CRIT Rate buff for 8 seconds. This does not apply to Hu Tao. Paramita Papilio doesn’t have to end naturally (by duration), this should take effect when you swap out Hu Tao before the state ends. But to get the most out of Hu Tao’s damage, you should keep her in until Paramita Papilio ends. Then, your Sub-DPS can take over with the CRIT Rate buff.
4th Ascension – Sanguine Rouge
When Hu Tao’s HP is at or under 50%, she receives a 33% Pyro DMG Bonus. Think of this like Hu Tao’s Burst benefits, but it applies at all times.
Utility Passive – The More the Merrier
When Hu Tao cooks a dish perfectly, she has an 18% chance to receive an additional “Suspicious” dish of the same type. Suspicious dishes are hilariously off-color and provide a lesser buff than a normal or Perfect dish would. If you’re one of those players who wants one of every item in their Inventory, but you don’t want to purposely make a bad dish, you’re going to love this Utility Passive.
Although it’s not considered a Passive Talent, Hu Tao’s initial sprint allows her to pass through smaller enemies. Unlike Mona or Ayaka, this does not apply to Hu Tao’s full sprint. However, her brief disappearance is a great dodging mechanism, especially for players who frequently dash to dodge.
Combat Talent Materials by Level
Remember, each Talent has its own level system. If you want to Triple Crown a character’s Talents, multiply all amounts by three.
| Talent Level 1-2 | 6 Whopperflower Nectar 3 Teachings of Diligence 12,500 Mora |
| Talent Level 2-3 | 3 Shimmering Nectar 2 Guides to Diligence 17,500 Mora |
| Talent Level 3-4 | 4 Shimmering Nectar 4 Guides to Diligence 25,000 Mora |
| Talent Level 4-5 | 6 Shimmering Nectar 6 Guides to Diligence 30,000 Mora |
| Talent Level 5-6 | 9 Shimmering Nectar 9 Guides to Diligence 37,500 Mora |
| Talent Ascension 6-7 | 4 Energy Nectar 4 Philosophies of Diligence 1 Shard of Foul Legacy 120,000 Mora |
| Talent Ascension 7-8 | 6 Energy Nectar 6 Philosophies of Diligence 1 Shard of Foul Legacy 260,000 Mora |
| Talent Ascension 8-9 | 9 Energy Nectar 12 Philosophies of Diligence 2 Shard of Foul Legacy 450,000 Mora |
| Talent Ascension 9-10 | 12 Energy Nectar 16 Philosophies of Diligence 2 Shard of Foul Legacy 1 Crown of Insight 700,000 Mora |
| Total Talent Materials | 6 Whopperflower Nectar 22 Shimmering Nectar 31 Energy Nectar 3 Teachings of Diligence 21 Guide to Diligence 38 Philosophies of Diligence 6 Shard of Foul Legacy 1 Crown of Insight 1,652,500 Mora |