Honkai Star Rail’s Arlan does a stellar job of protecting the Herta Space Station. Okay, he may not win every battle, but he’s more than willing to put his life on the line to protect those around him. But regardless of how brave or skilled the head of the Herta Space Station’s security department is, no one should have to shoulder such responsibility alone.
If you want to introduce yourself to the rest of the inhabitants of Herta Space Station, head over to our Honkai Star Rail tier list and Honkai Star Rail banner guides. You can grab some free resources with our Honkai Star Rail codes guide. We’ve also got a heap more build guides just like this one, including Honkai Star Rail’s Gallagher, Honkai Star Rail’s Firefly, and Honkai Star Rail’s Black Swan.
Let’s jump into everything you need to know about Honkai Star Rail’s Arlan.
What’s the best Honkai Star Rail Arlan build?
| Best light cone | The Unreachable Side |
| Light cone alternatives | On the Fall of an Aeon |
| Best relic set | Band of Sizzling Thunder and/or Longevous Disciple |
| Best planar ornament set | Rutilant Arena |
| Main stats |
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| Sub-stats |
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For Arlan’s best build, you should equip him with the five-star light cone The Unreachable Side, a combination of Band of Sizzling Thunder and Longevous Disciple, and Rutilant Arena.
His damage scales based on his attack, but his HP is equally important so make sure to balance the two stats while also boosting his lightning damage bonus, crit rate, and crit damage.
How should I use Arlan?
Arlan is a lightning-wielding DPS with high damage and low survivability, he plays the role of a glass cannon in most scenarios. He specializes in taking down single targets, and his skill sees him sacrifice a portion of his HP in order to deal more damage, though he can’t use this skill if his HP is insufficient. His passive also sees his damage increase based on his lost HP.
What are the best light cones for Arlan?
Honkai Star Rail Blade‘s light cone The Unreachable Side fits Arlan’s HP-cutting moveset perfectly, boosting his crit rate and max HP, as well as buffing his attack when he cuts his own health or when enemies attack him. However, it’s a limited five-star light cone, so can be a pain to acquire.
On the Fall of an Aeon is also a powerful option that’s a little easier to acquire, as you can buy it from Herta’s Store for eight Herta bonds. Arlan’s damage output scales based on his attack, so the incremental increase throughout the battle helps to lift his power to new heights.
The four-star light cone A Secret Vow is tailored to Arlan’s kit, both increasing his flat damage and allowing him to deal extra damage when an enemy has a higher HP percentage than him, which, due to his skills, is likely to be almost always active. However, if you can’t get your hands on A Secret Vow for whatever reason, you can equip him with any light cone that aligns with the path of The Destruction, preferably one that also boosts his attack.
| Light cone | Effect | How to obtain |
| The Unreachable Side | Increases Arlan’s crit rate by 18% and increases his max HP by 18%. When enemies attack Arlan or he consumes his own HP, his damage increases by 24%. This effect is removed after Arlan uses an attack | Limited gacha |
| On the Fall of an Aeon | Whenever Arlan attacks, his attack is increased by 8% in this battle, up to four times. When he inflicts weakness break on enemies, Arlan’s damage increases by 12% for two turns | Herta’s Store |
| A Secret Vow | Increases the damage Arlan deals by 20%. He also deals an extra 20% damage to enemies with a higher HP percentage than him | Gacha |
| Shattered Home | Increases the damage Arlan deals to enemies that have 50% of their max HP remaining by 20% | Gacha |
What are the best relics for Arlan?
When it comes to Honkai Star Rail relics, the best set for Arlan is the Band of Sizzling Thunder, as it increases his lightning damage and shock damage. He’s a clear main DPS character, so anything that boosts his elemental damage and attack stat is beneficial. We’ve also tried pairing two pieces of Band of Sizzling Thunder with two pieces of Musketeer of Wild Wheat to increase his attack stat.
Longevous Disciple is also a decent option for Arlan, increasing his max HP and offering a similar effect to Blade’s light cone that’s much easier to get your hands on.
For planar ornaments, Rutilant Arena is a great fit for Arlan as a main DPS, boosting his crit rate, basic attack damage, and skill damage. If you can get his speed high enough, Firmament Frontline: Glamoth is also viable, offering a generalized attack and damage buff rather than focusing on his basic attack and skill.
| Relic set | Effect | How to obtain |
| Band of Sizzling Thunder | Two pieces equipped: increases lightning damage by 10% Four pieces equipped: increases Arlan’s attack by 20% for one turn after he uses his skill |
Cavern of Corrosion: Path of Holy Hymn in the Xianzhou Luofu’s Cloudford |
| Longevous Disciple | Two pieces equipped: increases max HP by 12% Four pieces equipped: when Arlan is hit or has his HP consumed by an ally or himself, his crit rate increases by 8% for two turns and up to two stacks |
Cavern of Corrosion: Path of Elixir Seekers in The Xianzhou Luofu’s Alchemy Commission |
| Musketeer of Wild Wheat | Two pieces equipped: increases Arlan’s attack by 12% Four pieces equipped: increases Arlan’s speed by 6% and his basic attack damage by 10% |
Cavern of Corrosion: Path of Drifting in Jarilo-VI’s Corridor of Fading Echoes |
Planar ornaments
| Relic | Effect | How to obtain |
| Rutilant Arena | Two pieces equipped: increases Arlan’s crit rate by 8%. When his current crit rate reaches 70% or higher, Arlan’s basic attack and skill damage increase by 20% | Immersion Reward devices in World 7 of the Simulated Universe |
| Firmament Frontline: Glamoth | Two pieces equipped: increases Arlan’s attack by 12%. When his speed is equal to or higher than 135/160, Arlan deals 12%/18% more damage | Immersion Reward devices in World 8 of the Simulated Universe |
Relic stat recommendations
Main stats:
- Body: crit rate
- Feet: speed
- Planar sphere: lightning damage
- Link rope: attack%
Sub-stats:
- Crit rate and damage
- Attack%
- Speed
What’s the best team comp for Arlan?
While Arlan certainly isn’t the best DPS on the Honkai Star Rail tier list, he can be pretty powerful with the right team and build. For healing, Natasha is a no-brainer as her skill can directly target Arlan when his HP is getting low. Then, combine whichever supports, tanks, and sub-DPS characters suit your playstyle.
Here’s an example of a strong Arlan team comp:
| Main DPS | Support | Support | Healer |
 Arlan |
 Tingyun |
 Bronya |
 Natasha |
What are Arlan’s abilities?
Active skills:
| Skill | Effect |
| Basic attack: Lightning Rush (single attack) | Deal 50% of Arlan’s attack as lightning damage to a target enemy |
| Skill: Shackle Breaker (single attack) | Consume 15% of Arlan’s max HP to deal 120% of his attack as lightning damage to a target enemy. If Arlan does not have sufficient HP, his HP will be reduced to one after using his skill |
| Ultimate: Frenzied Punishment (blast) | Deal 192% of Arlan’s attack as lightning damage to a target enemy, and 96% of Arlan’s attack as lightning damage to enemies adjacent to the target |
Passive skill:
| Skill | Effect |
| Talent: Pain and Anger | Increases Arlan’s damage based on his lost HP, up to a max of 36% |
Technique:
| Skill | Effect |
| Swift Harvest | Immediately attack the enemy. After entering battle, deal 80% of Arlan’s attack as lightning damage to all enemies |
Traces:
| Trace | Effect |
| Revival | If Arlan defeats an enemy when he is at 30% or less of his max HP, restore his HP by 20% of Arlan’s max HP |
| Endurance | Arlan’s DoT resistance increases by 50% |
| Repel | If Arlan enters battle at 50% or less of his max HP he gains a barrier that nullifies the next incoming attack |
What are Arlan’s eidolons?
Eidolons in Honkai Star Rail are similar to Genshin Impact’s constellations. They’re unique buffs that you can only unlock by pulling more than one copy of a character. Here are all of Arlan’s eidolons.
| Eidolon | Effect |
| Level one – To the Bitter End | When Arlan’s HP is lower than or equal to 50% of max HP, increases skill’s damage by 10% |
| Level two – Breaking Free | Using Arlan’s skill or ultimate removes one debuff from himself |
| Level three – Power Through | Increases the level of Arlan’s skill by two, up to a maximum of level of 15, and increases the level of his basic attack by one, up to a maximum of level ten |
| Level four – Turn the Tables | When struck by a killing blow, instead of becoming incapacitated, Arlan immediately restores back to 25% of his max HP. This effect is automatically removed after it triggers once or after two turns have elapsed |
| Level five – Hammer and Tongs | Increases the level of Arlan’s ultimate by two, up to a maximum of level 15, and increases the level of his talent by two, up to a maximum of level 15 |
| Level six – Self-Sacrifice | When Arlan’s HP is lower than 50%, his ultimate’s damage increases by 20% and the damage multiplier on adjacent targets increases to that of the target enemy |
What are Arlan’s ascension materials?
You can do most of the work of leveling up Arlan with character EXP materials, but at certain points along the way you’ll need to spend specific resources to ascend him to the next level. Here’s a list of all the ascension materials you need for each rank.
You can get extinguished, glimmering, and squirming cores from flamespawn enemies, assignment rewards, Simulated Universe enemies, the embers exchange shop, or the omni-synthesizer. For the lightning crown of the past shadow you’ll need to take on the Honkai Star Rail stagnant shadow in Backwater Pass.
| Required level | Credits | Materials |
| 20 | 3.2k | Four extinguished core |
| 30 | 6.4k | Eight extinguished core |
| 40 | 12.8k | Five glimmering core, two lightning crown of the past shadow |
| 50 | 32k | Eight glimmering core, five lightning crown of the past shadow |
| 60 | 64k | Five squirming core, 15 lightning crown of the past shadow |
| 70 | 128k | Seven squirming core, 28 lightning crown of the past shadow |
What are Arlan’s trace materials?
Leveling up a character’s traces improves their abilities. To max out all of Arlan’s traces, you’ll need the following materials:
- 12 shattered blades, 54 lifeless blades, and 105 worldbreaker blades
- Obtain from the Bud of Destruction crimson calyx in the Storage Zone, synthesis, and the embers exchange
- 28 extinguished cores, 42 glimmering cores, and 42 squirming cores
- Obtain from certain fragmentum monsters, synthesis, and simulated universe enemies
- 12 destroyer’s final roads
- Obtain from the Destruction’s Beginning echo of war on the Herta Space Station Supply Zone
- Five tracks of destiny
- Obtain from events, simulated universe rewards, the embers exchange, and nameless honor
- 2.4 million credits
Skill trace priority:
- Skill > Ultimate > Talent > Basic attack
Major trace priority:
- Revival > Repel > Endurance
That’s everything we’ve got on Honkai Star Rail’s Arlan. Make sure to check out some of our other Hoyoverse game guides like our Genshin Impact tier list and Genshin Impact codes guide. We also have build guides like these for Genshin Impact’s Venti, Genshin Impact’s Fischl, and Genshin Impact’s Xiangling, plus more info on the Zenless Zone Zero release date.