In most combat-centric games, there is a clear distinction between two different types of damage dealers: agile, fast fighters, and heavy hitters. While there may be a lot of unique combat features in Genshin Impact, it also follows this general distinction.
However, despite the general mechanics of the game, it can be surprising to many players that although some of the characters on this list are not necessarily used for main DPS, or in particular for their heavy hits, they still have a great damage potential. While there isn't one distinct measure of combat strength in Genshin Impact, looking for the highest base attack can be a good indicator for players.
Updated on August 16th, 2023, by Elara Leclair: With the release of Fontaine region, players will be able to enjoy a grand set of new characters and explore new opportunities for gameplay mechanics. Unsurprisingly, many new strong DPS characters are expected to be added to the roster, while the specific details of how each of their kits will work or what they scale on are not highly known, except for the characters arriving in 4.0. Alongside this, there is already a change in the list with the addition of Lyney, a bow user, which also takes another bow user, Tartaglia, off the list.
All characters are listed with level 1 and level 90 base-attack stats.
15 Shenhe (24/304)
A striking addition in version 2.4, Shenhe offers a nice blend of high-level support and sustained DPS. Her elemental skill applies the Icy Quill effect, which adds extra damage to Cryo attacks from teammates.
Interestingly, this makes Shenhe a heavy hitter when not on the field. Icy Quill adds more damage if more than one opponent is hit, doubling the modifier for both enemies. However, that said, Shenhe is a niche character by the fact that she is actually considered a Cryo support rather than being a DMG dealer herself.
14 Klee (24/311)
Few people would think of bombs as being low damage. And quite simply, even in the hands of a child, bombs would make any character a heavy hitter; this certainly is the case for Klee.
Klee's reason for being a DPS is straightforward. She blows enemies away with her bombs, using an elemental skill that throws tiny bombs on the ground and a burst that uses a laser cannon.
13 Alhaitham (24/313)
The latest character to join Genshin Impact with Patch 3.4, Alhaitham, the scribe and Acting Grand Sage of Sumeru Akademiya, is one of the few Dendro DPS characters the game currently offers. With a high ATK value and scaling primarily with Elemental Mastery, Alhaitham is capable of dealing massive Dendro Damage with ease.
Players may find him a bit challenging at first due to the need to manage Chisel-Light Mirrors, but once mastered, this character has the potential to be one of the strongest characters in Genshin Impact for many patches to come.
12 Lyney (25/318)
While not very high on the list, as a bow user, Lyney makes it into the list with a solid ATK scaling, which undoubtedly helps him deal much more damage, combined with the added ATK increase provided in his kit. While there is still much to explore regarding his and his siblings' roles and personalities in terms of lore and story, players can expect him to have even more increased attack, especially with the right teammates.
It can be said that Lyney has a relatively unique kit that greatly benefits from this ATK scaling. This is because when paired with 2 other Pyro characters, Lyney will receive an additional 40% ATK, on top of the Pyro resonance which gives 25% ATK to the team members. With that, characters like Bennett make great team members for him to reach ATK values potentially not available to any other character, while also allowing players to focus on other stat values like Crit Rate or Crit Damage more easily.
11 Cyno (25/318)
Cyno, the latest playable Electro character in Genshin Impact, is the General Mahamatra who leads the Matra and instills terror in the researchers of the Sumeru Akademiya. With their powerful electro abilities, Cyno is sure to be a formidable force.
But striking fear is not the only powerful thing he can do. When his attacks are timed precisely, and during his Burst, he has tremendous damage potential. This potential is amplified even further when Elemental Reactions are utilized in his team composition, especially with Aggravate, as he is able to scale with Elemental Mastery.
10 Yoimiya (25/323)
The firework maker from the Naganohara family, Yoimiya is an interesting case for Genshin Impact characters in general (not just amongst heavy hitters.) After all, she is the only bow-user to do her damage primarily with her normal attacks rather than her charged attacks. This makes her currently the only character that truly benefits from using the Rust or Thundering Pulse.
Although some players may find her a bit underwhelming compared to other Pyro main-DPS characters, such as Hu Tao, Yoimiya certainly has great potential for massive damage. Furthermore, her elemental burst further increases her already high damage output by marking enemies for a damage increase.
9 Keqing (25/323)
Although one of the oldest characters in Genshin Impact, Keqing has remained a fan favorite, and her popularity has skyrocketed since the Sumeru update with the introduction of Dendro Reactions. This has made Electro a more viable option than ever before due to the strong reactions it provides, further boosting Keqing's appeal among players.
Keqing's fast-paced gameplay style, coupled with her frequent critical hits, makes her an excellent choice for a DPS character. Her damage has a naturally high base-stat combination, while both her elemental skill and burst utilize quick, offensive strikes for high Electro damage.
8 Wanderer (26/327)
Formerly known as Scaramouche, Wanderer is one of the most beloved and distinctive characters in Genshin Impact, renowned for his captivating backstory, innovative playstyle, and the fact that he is currently the only character alongside the Traveler that players can rename.
He also brings a unique and exciting playstyle to Anemo and Catalyst users, thanks to the fun gameplay mechanic he employs to deal immense damage. His impressive base ATK value gives him the potential to cause great destruction, which can be further improved with strategic team compositions based on different elements.
7 Diluc (26/335)
At Genshin Impact's release, Diluc was the original heavy hitter and the most popular main DPS. In fact, most fans still considered him to be at the top of DPS until Xiao and Ganyu's release, with his interesting set of Pyro talents. In fact, Diluc and Ganyu have the exact same base ATK values.
Despite falling behind many characters, the tycoon of The Dawn Winery is still a formidable force, especially once his constellations are unlocked. His constellations address his initial weaknesses, and there are only few gimmicks associated with his play style. In fact, his talents are some of the easiest to master in Genshin Impact.
6 Ganyu (26/335)
The secretary of the Liyue Qixing's placement on this list should really not come as a surprise to most Genshin Impact fans. After all, Ganyu doesn't place at the top of DPS characters for nothing.
Ganyu's charged shots are massive, hitting multiple opponents with high Cryo damage. And, of course, Ganyu also feeds off of her high critical hit rate and damage, often hitting critical hits half to one hundred percent of the time.
5 Raiden Shogun (26/337)
Archons are meant to be supernatural forces of power, and few tell this at face value quite as much as the most militant one so far. Raiden Shogun is an extremely good DPS, Electro polearm user, which gives her both an advantage in attack speed and normal attack scaling.
That said, the brunt of Raiden Shogun’s attack power goes to her elemental burst, replacing her normal polearm attacks with Electro-infused sword slashes. However, even without these infused-attacks, the Elemental Burst hit alone can do significant damage to many enemies or simply one-shot a lot of them.
4 Yae Miko (26/340)
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Like Klee and Wanderer, Yae Miko is a powerful catalyst user with tremendous DPS potential. With her ability to summon totems that remain on the battlefield, she can deliver significant damage even when she is off-field.
Her Elemental Burst is also quite strong and is especially effective in a well-coordinated team composition that allows her to showcase her true potential. Furthermore, Yae Miko's Electro application is superb, making her an excellent sub-DPS character.
3 Ayaka (27/342)
Ayaka's playstyle is incredibly powerful, enabling her to maintain near-permanent Cryo application, making her a formidable character, especially when used in Freeze team compositions. With the right build, she can effortlessly be one of the best DPS characters in the game, capable of dealing devastating critical hits, even without any constellations.
In fact, her charged attack has more potential for damage than most other Genshin Impact characters (suffice for maybe Keqing). And this comes at the benefit that her charged attack also works against crowds, multiplying her total damage by the number of opponents hit.
2 Eula (27/342)
Few characters fit into the heavy hitter category quite as well as Eula does. Her normal attacks do massive amounts of damage and her Elemental Burst is well-known as the biggest single hit up to date.
In addition, Eula makes for one of the most suitable physical DPS characters. Her normal attacks are actually fairly high damage-wise compared to even her own elemental potential. As a Cryo user, she can enhance her Physical damage strength even further with Superconduct reaction, if Eula's team composition includes an electro character with good off-field Electro application.
1 Xiao (27/349)
Frankly, many looking at Xiao may question whether he is a heavy hitter or not. However, based on damage alone, Xiao most certainly qualifies as a heavy hitter (should the player avoid a few major mistakes) — Xiao has the highest base attack in Genshin Impact.
However, the Yaksha makes for a heavy hitter with the quirk that he doesn't lose agility per se, but rather he increases in vulnerability (via karma) and has high cooldowns. Players should be aware of this when choosing strategies for Xiao.
Genshin Impact is available for mobile, PC, PS4, and PS5. A Switch version is currently in development.