Genshin Impact’s Xiao is a five-star anemo polearm wielder, adeptus, and sole surviving member of Morax’s five Yakshas. Plagued with karmic debt, our vigilant yaksha is quite a loner these days, residing in Wangshu Inn and generally keeping to himself – until you summon him to the battlefield, that is. In this Xiao build we go over his skills, ascension materials, best weapons and artifacts, and more.
If you’re looking for more content like this, take a look at our Genshin Impact Kokomi, Genshin Impact Raiden, and Genshin Impact Albedo build guides. We’ve also created a Genshin Impact tier list so you can see where all your favourite characters rank, and a Genshin Impact codes list so you can get your hands on some extra primogems.
Now it’s time to call out his name, as we plunge into our Genshin Impact Xiao build guide.
What’s the best Genshin Impact Xiao build?
| Best weapon | Primordial Jade Winged-Spear |
| Weapon substitutes |
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| Best artifact set | Vermillion Hereafter |
| Artifact substitutes |
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| Main stats |
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| Sub stats |
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Xiao is a very unique, five-star anemo polearm wielder, who makes for a powerful on-field DPS. His long burst time makes him a pretty greedy character who requires a dedicated team of supports to truly shine. Luckily, most of his best team mates don’t require a high level of investment, though.
In terms of equipment, we recommend equipping him with the five-star weapon Primordial Jade Winged-Spear, along with a full set of Vermillion Hereafter artifacts. He requires quite a bit of energy recharge, along with plenty of crit rate/damage and attack%. For more info on his best stats and alternative weapons and artifacts, check the dedicated sections below.
How to use Xiao
Xiao’s kit is very unique, offering a lot of mobility and fluidity in battle. In combat, you can use his elemental skill to either blitz through enemies or reposition yourself, regardless of whether you’re in the middle of a burst, in the air, or on the ground. It takes a bit of practice, but once you get into the rhythm he’s very fun to use.
Xiao’s burst lasts for a pretty long time, and it cancels if he leaves the field or dies. It also happens to be where his damage hits its highest peaks. Unfortunately, Xiao’s a pretty squishy guy, too, and his HP drains during his burst. Therefore, you should always be mindful of when you activate it, and ensure you set up all the off-field elemental application, buffs, shields, and heals you need before letting rip.
Also keep in mind that Xiao’s burst doesn’t snapshot. Therefore, if you’re using a support with a buffing and healing field like Bennett, you should aim to keep Xiao inside said field throughout his burst. To make this easier, you can use another support with grouping capabilities, such as Kazuha, Sucrose, or even Faruzan to an extent, in order to pull all of your enemies together.
What’s Xiao’s best weapon?
Xiao’s best weapon is the Primordial Jade Winged-Spear. Its high base attack, easy-to-proc passive, and crit rate boost are all extremely helpful, and you can even get it on the standard banner if you’re lucky.
Next up is Staff of Homa, which is generally the best all-rounder polearm in the game due to its high base attack and crit damage. However, we strongly advise against forming your team around the idea of keeping Xiao at low HP in order to trigger its passive – in most situations it’s simply not worth it, especially as Xiao’s best teams rely on Genshin Impact Bennett‘s hefty attack buff. Staff of Homa is also a highly contested weapon, and may be better used on other characters – especially if you’ve got Genshin Impact’s Hu Tao.
If you’re looking for other five-star polearms, we’ve not included them in the table below for the sake of brevity, but Vortex Vanquisher and Calamity Queller are decent back-up options if you don’t have PJWS or SoH. Though their skills aren’t quite as useful, they both act as strong stat sticks – but they may require you to switch around your artifacts to ensure he has enough crit. Other five-star polearms are generally sub-optimal and likely better used on other characters.
In terms of four-star options, Deathmatch is a great choice, especially at R5, as it offers a heap of crit and its passive is constantly active, though it requires you to purchase the battle pass. Lithic Spear and Blackcliff Pole are also strong back up options.
If you want a more detailed breakdown and to see damage comparisons between all the different options, be sure to check out the amazing Keqingmains Xiao guide.
| Weapon | Effect | How to obtain |
| Primordial Jade Winged-Spear | Base stat: crit rate Skill: on hit, Xiao’s attack increases by 3.2% for six seconds (max seven stacks). This can only occur once every 0.3 seconds. If Xiao possesses seven stacks, his damage dealt increases by 12% |
Gacha |
| Staff of Homa | Base stat: crit damage Skill: Xiao’s HP increases by 20%, and he gains an attack bonus based on 0.8% of his max HP. When his HP falls below 50%, this attack bonus increases by an additional 1% of his max HP |
Gacha |
| Deathmatch | Base stat: crit rate Skill: if there are at least two opponents nearby by, attack increases by 16% and defence increases by 16%. If there are fewer than two opponents nearby, attack increases by 24% |
Battle Pass reward |
| Lithic Spear | Base stat: attack Skill: for every character in the party who hails from Liyue, the equipping character gains 7% attack and 3% crit rate. This effect stacks up to four times |
Gacha |
| Blackcliff Pole | Base stat: crit damage Skill: Xiao’s attack increases by 12% for 30 seconds after he defeats an enemy. Max three stacks. The duration of each stack is independent |
Purchase from Paimon’s Bargains shop |
What are the best artifacts for Xiao?
We recommend equipping Xiao with a full set of Vermillion Hereafter, or two artifacts from Gladiator’s Finale and Viridescent Venerer to maximize his damage output.
| Artifact set | Effect | How to obtain |
| Vermillion Hereafter | Two equipped: Increases attack by 18% Four equipped: After using an elemental burst, Xiao gains the Nascent Light effect, which increases his attack by 8% for 16 seconds. When his HP decreases, his attack increases by a further 10%. This can occur this way a maximum of four times and can be triggered once every 0.8 seconds. Nascent Light is dispelled when Xiao leaves the field. If Xiao uses an elemental burst again during the duration of Nascent Light, the original Nascent Light is dispelled. |
The Lost Valley domain in Fuao Vale, The Chasm |
| Gladiator’s Finale | Two equipped: Increases attack by 18% Four equipped: If the wielder of this set uses a sword, claymore, or polearm, their normal attack damage is increased by 35% |
World and weekly bosses, Gladiator’s Finale artifact strongboxes, and Adventure rank up and journal rewards |
| Viridescent Venerer | Two equipped: 15% anemo damage bonus Four equipped: Swirl damage is increased by 60%. Your opponent’s elemental resistance to the element infused in the swirl is decreased by 40% for ten seconds |
Valley of Remembrance in Windwail Highland, near the Dawn Winery |
Artifact stats recommendations
Main stats:
- Sands: attack%
- Criclet: crit rate or crit damage (try to maintain a 1:2 rate to damage ratio)
- Goblet: anemo damage bonus or attack% (anemo is almost always going to be the better choice here)
Sub stats:
- Crit rate and crit damage
- Attack%
- Energy recharge
Xiao scales off attack, crit rate, and crit damage, so they should always be your priority when it comes to sub-stats. Generally, we recommend aiming for at least 70% crit rate and 140% crit damage. Of course, the higher the better – just try to maintain a roughly 1:2 crit rate to crit damage ratio to see the full benefit.
Energy recharge isn’t as important to Xiao as it is to other characters, but his gameplay does rely on his elemental burst, so we recommending aiming for about 20-40% energy recharge through artifact sub-stats.
What are Xiao’s skills?
Here are all of Xiao’s active and passive skills.
Active skills:
| Skill | Effect |
| Normal attack: Whirlwind Thrust | Normal: perform up to six strikes Charged: consume stamina to perform an upward thrust Plunge: plunge from mid-air, dealing AoE damage on impact with the ground |
| Elemental skill: Lemniscatic Wind Cycling | Deals AoE anemo damage to enemies in his path, can be used in mid-air. Starts with two charges |
| Elemental burst: Bane of All Evil | Xiao dons the Yaksha Mask which has the following effects:
While wearing the mask, Xiao will continuously lose HP |
Passive skills:
| Skill | Effect |
| Transcension – Gravity Defier | Decreases climbing stamina consumption for party members by 20%. Not stackable |
| Dissolution Eon – Heaven Fall | Lemniscatic Wind Cycling increases the damage of subsequent uses by 15%. This effect lasts for seven seconds, and a maximum of three stacks. The duration refreshes when Xiao gains a new stack |
| Evil Conqueror – Tamer of Demons | While under the effects of Bane of All Evil, Xiao’s damage dealt increases by 5%, and by a further 5% for every three seconds that this ability is active. The maximum damage bonus is 25% |
Talent priorities
When leveling up Xiao’s talents, we recommend prioritizing the following:
- Normal attack > elemental burst > elemental skill
What are Genshin Impact Xiao’s constellations?
If you manage to nab more than one copy of Xiao, you can unlock one of his constellations. Here are all of his constellations and the buffs they provide.
| Constellation | Effect |
| C1: Dissolution Eon – Destroyer of Worlds | Increases Lemniscatic Wind Cycling’s charges by one |
| C2: Annihilation Eon – Blossom of Kaleidos | Increases energy recharge by 25% when Xiao is in the party but not on the field |
| C3: Evil Conqueror – Wrath Deity | Increases the level of Lemniscatic Wind Cycling by three |
| C4: Transcension – Extinction of Suffering | When Xiao’s HP falls below 50%, he gains a 100% defence bonus |
| C5: Evolution Eon – Origin of Ignorance | Increases the level of Bane of All Evil by three |
| C6: Evil Conqueror – Vigilant Yaksha | While under the effects of Bane of All Evil, hitting at least two opponents with a plunging attack grants Xiao one charge of Lemniscatic Wind Cycling. Additionally, for the next one second, he can use Lemniscatic Wind Cycling while ignoring its cooldown |
What are Genshin Impact Xiao’s ascension materials?
Here are all the materials you need to ascend Xiao to max level. The qingxin flowers grow around the mountains of Liyue, and the slime materials come from slime enemies. You can farm the juvenile jades from the Primo Geovishap world boss in Liyue.
| Required level | Mora | Materials |
| 20 | 20k | One vayuda turquoise sliver, three qingxin, three slime condensate |
| 40 | 40k | Three vayuda turquoise fragment, two juvenile jade, ten qingxin, 15 slime condensate |
| 50 | 60k | Six vayuda turquoise fragment, four juvenile jade, 20 qingxin, 12 slime secretions |
| 60 | 80k | Three vayuda turquoise chunk, eight juvenile jade, 30 qingxin, 18 slime secretions |
| 70 | 100k | Six vayuda turquoise chunk, 12 juvenile jade, 45 qingxin, 12 slime secretions |
| 80 | 120k | Six vayuda turquoise gemstone, 20 juvenile jade, 60 qingxin, 24 slime secretions |
What are Genshin Impact Xiao’s talent materials?
You can level each of Xiao’s normal attack, elemental skill, and elemental burst to a maximum of level ten. Here are all the materials you need to fully upgrade one of Xiao’s talents.
You can collect the slime materials by defeating slime enemies around Teyvat. The prosperity talent books come from the Taishan Mansion domain on Mondays, Thursdays, and Sundays, and the shadow of the warrior materials are drops from the Childe Tartaglia weekly boss in Liyue.
| Level | Mora | Materials |
| Two | 12.5k | Six slime condensate, three teachings of prosperity |
| Three | 17 .5k | Three slime secretions, two guide to prosperity |
| Four | 25k | Four slime secretions, four guide to prosperity |
| Five | 30k | Six slime secretions, six guide to prosperity |
| Six | 37.5k | Nine slime secretions, nine guide to prosperity |
| Seven | 120k | Four slime concentrate, four philosophies of prosperity, one shadow of the warrior |
| Eight | 260k | Six slime concentrate, six philosophies of prosperity, one shadow of the warrior |
| Nine | 450k | Nine slime concentrate, 12 philosophies of prosperity, two shadow of the warrior |
| Ten | 700k | 12 slime concentrate, 16 philosophies of prosperity, two shadow of the warrior, one crown of insight |
What are the best Xiao team comps?
When picking a team for Xiao, we recommend picking one battery and two supports. Xiao is a hyper carry, and the rest of the team’s main aim is to ensure that he’s well taken care of – i.e. buffed, shielded, and healed up.
Xiao benefits from having a second anemo character on his team to help battery him. Faruzan is easily Xiao’s best support, especially at C6, as she offers a wide range of utility and buffs. Unfortunately, her expensive burst and limited particle generation before C6 isn’t ideal, so you may need to fill a third slot with another anemo battery.
Zhongli also synergises extremely well with Xiao, and is a main-stay in Xiao teams. His amazing shield gives Xiao some much-needed interruption resist, as well as the comfort of being able to plunge safely throughout his burst.
Additionally, Zhongli shreds enemy resistance, can dish out some nice damage of his own, and is capable of crowd control with his burst for that extra bit of breathing room when required. And, for the lore-minded among you, he and Xiao also have a lot of history together, and there’s something very touching about seeing them support each other on the battlefield.
Finally, Bennett is a brilliant support and healer for Xiao. He’s a prime Noblesse Oblige holder, with an elemental burst that offers both healing and an amazing attack buff. What a good boy.
Of course, Bennett, Zhongli, and Faruzan aren’t the only good allies for Xiao. Here are some example team comps for you to try out. Keep in mind that you can experiment and switch out characters depending on your personal play style and character pool. Click on the character icons below to check out their full build guides.
| First character slot | Second character slot | Third character slot | Fourth character slot |
 Xiao |
 Zhongli |
 Faruzan |
 Bennett |
| Xiao |
Zhongli |
Faruzan |
 Jean |
| Xiao |
 Sucrose |
Zhongli |
 Albedo |
| Xiao |
Faruzan |
 Diona |
 Rosaria |
Whew! You made it all the way through our Genshin Impact Xiao guide. Now, why not grab a bowl of almond tofu and settle in for some more Hoyo adventures, with the help of our Honkai Star Rail tier list, Honkai Star Rail codes, Honkai Star Rail events, and Honkai Star Rail banner guides. We’ve also got a list of all Zenless Zone Zero characters for your perusal.