In Genshin Impact, Yao Yao is a 4-star Dendro-elemental character who wields a spear in combat. In a team, she can play the role of a support-healer or a sub-DD with an emphasis on creating reactions. In this guide, we will tell you about her best builds, weapons and artifacts, as well as consider the most optimal units for her.
It can act as a Dendro applicator (impose an elemental status on enemies), taking the position of a sub-DD in the squad thanks to its elemental skill, which allows you to periodically inflict Dendro damage outside the field. Her usefulness in this role greatly increases when the 6th Constellation is unlocked.
There were some cons, which include:
- To fully reveal its potential, you need to put Yao Yao in teams with characters whose elements interact with Dendro (we are talking about Hydro, Electro and Pyro elements). However, if you use it only as a healer, then it can be useful to almost any squad.
- Does not have an ability like Djinn's or Barbara's Elemental Explosion, which allows you to instantly restore health to the entire squad. It restores HP little by little and in a certain area.
- Elemental Explosion only works if the heroine is on the battlefield, which can negatively affect the overall DPS of the squad, since Yao Yao will take the time of the main-DD. It's also quite expensive (80 energy), so you'll either need to increase your energy regen or keep your ult to a minimum.
- Has a low base attack, making it difficult to use as a damage dealer and balance stats when using Yao Yao as a sub-DD, since the damage from her skills does not depend on the maximum HP, but on ATK.
Yao Yao's abilities
When performing a normal attack “Spinning Spear”, the heroine performs up to 4 hits with her polearm, and when charged, she lunges, dealing damage to all enemies in her path and wasting some stamina. When falling, she lands on the ground, causing splash damage.
After a quick press on the elemental skill button “Heavenly Cluster of Radish”, Yao Yao throws Throwing Yuegui in front of him, and after a long press, the aiming mode is activated, allowing the player to choose the place where the mechanism will fall. The cooldown is 15 seconds.
< p>Throwing Yuegui has the following properties:
- Approximately once per second for 10 seconds, he throws a white jade radish that explodes when it hits enemies or heroes, dealing damage to enemies and healing allies in a certain area. The amount of healing depends on Yao Yao's maximum HP. If the radish does not come into contact with anyone, it will explode automatically after 5 seconds.
- Yuegui throws the radish not randomly, but in accordance with certain conditions: if the character has more than 70% health, then he aims at the nearest enemy , and otherwise tries to hit the wounded hero. If there are no enemies nearby, he will throw vegetables at the characters anyway.
- No more than two Throwing Yuegui can be on the battlefield at the same time.
After casting an elemental burst of Descent of the Moon Jasper, the heroine deals damage to Dendro in a small area around her and enters the Adept Legacy state, in which she creates three Leaping Yuegui at approximately 1 second intervals. They also throw radishes, following the same rules as Yuegui Throwers, but their “bombs” deal more damage and restore more health to all characters in the party at once.
After using her ult, the heroine also gains 15% movement speed and increased resistance to Dendro by 50%. The cooldown time of the ability is 20 seconds. If Yao Yao leaves the battlefield, then all the effects and Leaping Yuegui will immediately disappear.
We also can’t help but talk about the useful passive talents of the heroine:
- Tiptoeing – If you have Yao Yao on your team, crabs, crystal butterflies, frogs, and other creatures will no longer run away from you.
- Scattering Stars – after activating the explosion of the elements, Yao Yao will start throwing one every 0.6 seconds radish when performing jerks, jumps and sprints. A very useful talent in packs for Budding.
- Care for the neighbor – when a radish explodes, it additionally restores health to the heroes located in the zone of its operation every second. The effect lasts for 5 seconds and heals for 0.8% of Yao Yao's maximum health.
Constellations of Yao Yao
To unlock them, you need Character Luck, which is given when duplicates of the heroine appear, which, of course, is random. However, the chance of getting 4-star characters is much higher than the legendary ones, so you may well open at least a couple of constellations.
If Dendro damageer is present in the team, then we recommend that you try to unlock C1, which can significantly strengthen it. Those who want to turn Yao Yao into a sub-DD should definitely open C4, which will increase the mastery of the elements of the heroine, thereby increasing the damage from reactions. C6, on the other hand, will be very useful for both the healer and the secondary damage dealer. All constellations can be found below:
- Adept's Mentorship – When a radish explodes, the active hero in its area of effect receives a 15% Dendro damage bonus for 8 seconds. He also regenerates 15 stamina (no more than once every 5 seconds).
- Purity – if, after activating the ult, the exploded radish will cause damage to enemies, then the heroine will recover 3 units of energy. The effect does not trigger more than once every 0.8 seconds. Thus, the cost of the explosion of the elements can drop by 15 units (or 18 units if passive). This will make it easier for you to use the cooldown ability.
- Loyalty and kindness – the level of the elemental skill increases by three. Max level: 15th.
- Amity – After using an elemental skill or ultimate, the heroine's elemental mastery is increased by 0.3% of her maximum health for 8 seconds, up to 120 points (achieved at 40 thousand HP).
- Compassion – elemental explosion level increases by three. Max level: 15th.
- Benevolence – On the third throw, Thrower Yuegui throws 1 mega radish, which has a long range and deals area damage equal to 75% of the heroine's attack power to Dendro. She also heals the active hero for 7.5% of the maximum health of the Adept apprentice.
How to play as Yao Yao
Yao Yao is an amazing healer who is perfect for almost under any Dendro pack, especially aimed at the Budding reaction, so we recommend that you use it in this particular role. At the same time, it is advisable to put an Adept student with damage dealers that are hyper carries, that is, they are almost all the time on the battlefield, since her E-shka (the main healing ability) only works on one character.
The rotation will look as simple as possible:
- Use the rotation intended for your main damage dealer.
- If you need to heal the main damage, then switch to Yao Yao , quickly use her elemental skill, and then return to the main DPS of the squad again.
Using Yao Yao's elemental explosion will be situational. It can, for example, be activated when you urgently need to quickly heal all your heroes. If you don't have enough characters to apply the Dendro status, you can use Yao Yao's E-box before switching to main damage to make it easier to create Budding and Stimulation.
If you have a 6-constellation open and really want to try playing Yao Yao as a sub-DD, then with it you can open (applicator) or even close (reactor) reactions with sufficiently pumped mastery of the elements. You will have to use her ult more often, during which the heroine should not leave the battlefield for several seconds, so the main damage dealer does not have to be a hyper carry.
The rotation will change slightly:
- Use the abilities of sub-DD and off-field supports, then switch to Yao Yao and use her elemental ability.
- Switch to main damage and hit the enemies for 10 seconds, creating various Dendro reactions.
- Repeat the first two steps until you have accumulated a Yao Yao element explosion, then activate it and start jumping and dashing for creating additional rares.
However, be prepared for the fact that you will have difficulty balancing the characteristics, as you will have to increase several parameters at the same time. You can read more about this below.
Best builds for Yao Yao
Support healer
Everything is quite simple here, since the healing abilities of the heroine directly depend on her maximum health, so all the forces must be used to increase her HP. You can also slightly increase energy recovery to use elemental burst more often. Suitable weapons are shown in the table below.
| Name and rarity | Statistics (level 1- 90) | Passive |
|---|---|---|
Staff of Homa (5 stars) | Crit Damage: 14.4%~66.2% Basic Attack: 46~608 | Increases health by 20 percent and increases attack bonus by 0.8 percent of maximum HP. If the life bar falls below half, then the attack is additionally increased by 1 percent. A good option for a healer, as it allows you to significantly increase health without any additional conditions. At the same time, sub-DD can also use it due to the increase in crits and attack power of the heroine, which will increase the damage from her abilities. The only disadvantage of the spear is that it is often much more useful to give it to other characters, such as Hu Tao or Zhong Li. |
Black Brush (3 stars) | HP: 10.2%~46.9 % Basic Attack: 38~354 | Increases damage against slimes by 40%~80%. The only polearm that has a health boost as a secondary stat. At the 5th awakening, which is relatively easy to achieve, it can significantly increase the healing ability of the heroine. |
Favonius' Spear (4 stars) | Energy Regen: 6, 7%~30.6% Basic Attack: 44~565 | Critical hits have a 60% chance to generate elemental particles that restore 6 energy. The effect occurs every 12 seconds. Gives energy to the heroine and her allies, allowing them to use their elemental blasts more often. Still, Yao Yao's ult heals better than her skill, and she can heal the whole group at the same time. |
Chitain Crossspear (4 stars) | Elemental Mastery: 24~ 110 Basic Attack: 44~565 | Increases elemental skill damage by 6%~12%. When hitting an enemy with a skill, the hero loses 3 units of energy, but restores 3-5 units every 2 seconds for 6 seconds. The bonus appears every 10 seconds. Can be easily obtained and awakened by completing the Orobashi's Legacy questline. Allows you to use your ultimate more often due to the restoration of energy, as well as increase the mastery of the elements, thereby strengthening Dendro's reactions, and increase the damage of the elemental skill. As a result, this weapon will be useful for both the healer and the sub-DD. |
As for artifacts, we recommend that you collect the full set of Millelite Fortitude, 2 parts of which increase the level of health by 20 percent, and 4 parts of which increase the attack of all heroes in the team by 20 percent, and their shield strength by 30 percent. The duration of the effect is 3 seconds (it occurs every 0.5 seconds). Artifacts work even if the character equipped with them is not on the battlefield. You can get them in the Mountain Watch dungeon.
You can also take one of the two complete sets for healing:
- Beloved Young Maiden: 2 parts – increases the healing of the hero by 15%, and 4 parts – increases the healing received by all team members by 20% for 10 seconds after using an “ult” or elemental skill. Dropped from the Valley of Memories dungeon.
- Marine Dye Clam: 2 pieces increase healing bonus by 15%. If all 4 parts are used, then when healing allies, the hero will begin to create bubbles of sea paints that fix the restored health points, and then explode, dealing damage to enemies in the amount of 90 percent of the calculated amount of treatment. A bubble can occur once every 3.5 seconds and lock up to 40,000 HP regenerated. Only one bubble can exist at a time. It occurs even when the character is not on the battlefield. Dropped from the Dormant Garden dungeon.
You can also combine 2 pieces of Beloved Young Maiden or Seacolor Clam with Millelite Fortitude if no full sets are available.
If we talk about the main characteristics of artifacts, then take an hourglass for HP%, a cup (goblet) for HP%, and a crown (hat) for HP% or a healing bonus. The selection priority for secondary attributes is as follows: HP% > Energy recovery > Elemental Mastery.
Secondary DPS
Everything is already much more complicated here, since you will need to balance between attack power (affects damage from skills), elemental mastery (to enhance reactions) and energy recovery (for more frequent use of the ult). The optimal spears are shown in the table below.
| Name and rarity | Specs (level 1- 90) | Passive |
|---|---|---|
Piercing the Moon (4 stars) | Elemental Mastery: 24~ 110 Basic attack: 44~565 | When the elemental reactions Escalate, Burn, Grow, Vegetate, Stimulate, Bloom, and Bud, a Revive Leaf appears near the hero, lasting for 10 seconds. The hero who picks up this leaf gains 16%~32% more Attack Power for 12 seconds. A sheet can appear once every 20 seconds. The bonus is activated even if the weapon carrier is not on the battlefield. The best option for Yao Yao in the role of a sub-DD, surpassing even 5-star spears, as it not only increases the damage of the heroine's abilities themselves, but also increases the reactions she creates Dendro, increasing MS. |
Staff of Homa (5 stars) | Crit Damage: 14, 4%~66.2% Basic Attack: 46~608 | Increases health by 20 percent and increases attack bonus by 0.8 percent of maximum HP. If the life bar falls below half, then the attack is additionally increased by 1 percent. A good option for a healer, as it allows you to significantly increase health without any additional conditions. At the same time, sub-DD can also use it due to the increase in crits and attack power of the heroine, which will increase the damage from her abilities. The only disadvantage of the spear is that it is often much more useful to give it to other characters, such as Hu Tao or Zhong Li. |
< img class="aligncenter" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/jao-jao-v-genshin-impact-gajd-na-luchshie-bildy-26a52f7.jpg" alt="Yao Yao in Genshin Impact : a guide to the best builds" /> Staff of Scarlet Sands (5-stars) | 9.6%~44.1% Critical Hit Chance Basic attack: 44~542 | Increases the hero's attack bonus by 52% of the hero's Elemental Mastery. Hitting an enemy with an elemental skill increases the character's attack bonus by 28% of their elemental mastery for 10 seconds. The bonus stacks up to three times. Increases crits and also indirectly increases elemental mastery and attack power. Not a bad option for a sub-DD in a team with Electro characters, aimed at creating the Growth reaction. |
Shining Harvest (5 Stars) | Energy Regen: 12~55.1 % Basic attack: 46~608 | Increases attack power by 28~56% of HP above 100%. After using Elemental Burst, Energy Recovery is increased by 30~50%. Gives you the ability to cast your ultimate more often, while increasing its damage by increasing the heroine's ATK. |
< img class="aligncenter" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/jao-jao-v-genshin-impact-gajd-na-luchshie-bildy-b0157a3.jpg" alt="Yao Yao in Genshin Impact : Best Build Guide" /> Kitain's Cross Spear (4 stars) | Elemental Mastery: 24 ~110 Basic Attack: 44~565 | Increases elemental skill damage by 6%~12%. When hitting an enemy with a skill, the hero loses 3 units of energy, but restores 3-5 units every 2 seconds for 6 seconds. The bonus appears every 10 seconds. Can be easily obtained and awakened by completing the Orobashi's Legacy questline. Allows you to use your ultimate more often due to the restoration of energy, as well as increase the mastery of the elements, thereby strengthening Dendro's reactions, and increase the damage of the elemental skill. As a result, this weapon will be useful for both the healer and the sub-DD. |
Dragonbane (4 stars) | Elemental Mastery: 48-221 < p>Basic attack: 41~454 | Increases damage by 20%~36% when fighting enemies affected by Pyro or Hydro. Significantly increases MC, so it allows you to greatly enhance the Dendro reactions. It is desirable to have Hydro or Pyro characters in the squad when playing through Budding or Combustion. |
Catch (4 stars) | Energy regeneration: 10%~45.9% Basic attack: 42~510 | A budget option that increases elemental explosion damage by 16%, and its critical hit chance by 6%. Another good free option that allows you to use Elemental Burst more often. It also boosts her damage significantly. |
If the squad has Dendro main-DD, then we highly recommend using the full set of artifacts “Memories of the Deep Forest”, 2 parts of which increase the Dendro damage bonus by 15%, and 4 parts – in case of hit by an ult or elemental skill, reduce the enemy’s resistance to Dendro damage by 30% for 8 seconds. The bonus is activated even if the character is not on the battlefield. It can be found in the Spire of Lonely Enlightenment dungeon.
When building a pack aimed at creating Budding, it is best to take the Flower of Lost Paradise set, 2 parts of which increase elemental mastery by 80 points, and 4 parts of which increase the damage from reactions such as Bloom, Vegetation and Budding by 40%. Plus, if these reactions are activated by the hero who wears this set, then the effect will increase by 25%. The bonus can stack up to four times and manifest once per second, and each stack lasts ten seconds. The effect can occur even if the fighter wearing the set is not on the battlefield. You can get it in the City of Gold dungeon.
The Gilded Dreams set can also be a good option, 2 parts of which increase elemental mastery by 80 points, and 4 parts increase attack power by 14% for each fighter in the squad with the same god's eye and elemental mastery by 50 points for each hero with another element. The effect occurs every 8 seconds and occurs even if the wearer of the set is not on the battlefield. It can also be obtained from the Spire of Lonely Enlightenment.
As for the selection of the main characteristics of artifacts, then take an hourglass for elemental mastery, a goblet (chalice) for elemental mastery or a Dendro damage bonus, and a hat (crown) for elemental mastery. Among the additional options, the selection priority is as follows: Energy recovery > ATK% > HP%.
The best commands for Yao Yao
This heroine is best combined with Hydro characters, allowing her to create the Budding reaction and its derivatives. The fact is that such units definitely need a healer, since Dendro cores can cause damage not only to enemies, but also to the player’s fighters.
However, Yao Yao looks good in commands for the Stimulation reaction (Dendro + Electro). In general, she can perfectly complement almost any damage dealer related to the Dendro element. All optimal units are shown in the table below.
| Primary DPS | Secondary DPS | Minor DPS/Support | Support |
|---|---|---|---|
Ayato |
Nilu |
Nahida |
Yao Yao |
Saino |
Nahida |
Fischl |
Yao Yao |
Ke Qing |
Raiden |
Nahida |
Yao Yao |
Al-Haytham |
Xing Qiu |
Raiden |
Yao Yao |
Tignari |
Yae Miko |
Yao Yao |
Jung Li |
Nilu |
Ye Lan |
Colles |
Yao Yao |
Leveling Yao Yao
How to improve skills
You have to look for and collect many different materials, namely:
- Teachings , directions and philosophies about Diligence – Looted Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays in the Taishanfu Dungeon.
- Slime, Excretions and Slime Concentrate – Dropped by slimes, purchased with Starlight, or crafted with Alchemy.
- Empty Bell – Dropped by the weekly boss Seki no Kami.
- Crown of Insight – can be obtained during events, as well as by leveling the Sacred Sakura, the Tree of Permafrost and the Tree of Dreams.
As for the priority of leveling talents, when playing the role of a healer, you need up to about 6- th level to download an elemental skill and an explosion of the elements at the same time. Then pump the E-shku to the end and only then the ult. Normal attacks do not need to be upgraded.
If you use Yao Yao as a sub-DD, then the first step is to pump her elemental explosion, and then the elemental skill. Ordinary strikes again can not be upgraded or upgraded only to level 5-6.
How to level up a character
Get ready to search and collect a large number of different materials. Their list and methods of extraction are listed below.
- Ascension 1 (Level 20; 20,000 mora) – 1 Nagadus Emerald Shard, 3 Cloud Peppers, 3 Slime Slimes 10 Cloud Pepper, 15 Slime Slime
- Third Ascension (level 50; 60,000 mora) – 6 Nagadus Emerald Fragments, 4 Suppressed Vines, 20 Cloud Pepper, 12 Slime Excretion
- Fourth Ascension (Level 60; 80,000 mora) – 3 Nagadus Emeralds, 8 Suppressed Vines, 30 Cloudy Peppers, 18 Slime Excretions vines, 45 sky-high peppers, 12 sky-high peppers
- Ascension Six (level 80; 120,000 mora) – 6 precious Nagadus emeralds, 20 suppressed vines, 60 sky-high peppers, 24 slime concentrates
You can get Nagadus Emeralds from Feathered Mold and Hypostasis Dendro. The latter also drops Suppressed Vines. Sky-high peppers are a local curiosity of Li Yue. In a separate guide, we indicated their location.
