Blade vs Kafka: Speculating which 5-star to pick in Honkai Star Rail 1.6

Blade and Kafka will get their first rerun banner in Honkai Star Rail version 1.6. Both of the Stellaron Hunters members excel in dealing damage to opponents. Players who have skipped them during version 1.2 might wonder which is the best 5-star to pick in the upcoming update.

This article discusses the Stellaron Hunters duo’s abilities and which 5-star unit to pick in version 1.6 of Honkai Star Rail.

Note: This article is based on leaks and is subject to change.

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Blade’s abilities in Honkai Star Rail

Blade (Image via HoYoverse)

Blade wields the power of the Wind element and hails from the Path of Destruction. His abilities are detailed below:

• Basic ATK: Deals Wind damage to a single enemy.
• Enhanced Basic ATK: When Hellscape state is active, Blade deals Wind damage to three adjacent enemies. This attack scales with his HP and ATK stat and consumes 10% of his health.
• Skill: Blade consumes 30% of his HP to enter the Hellscape state for three turns. While in the state, his Basic ATK gets enhanced. If his HP is insufficient, his health will be reduced to one when activating the ability.
• Ultimate: Sets Blade’s health to 50% of his max HP and launches an Area of Effect (AoE) attack that deals absurd Wind damage on three adjacent enemies. This attack scales with his HP and ATK stat and total HP lost in the battle.
• Passive Talent: Blade unleashes a follow-up attack that deals Wind damage on all enemies when he gains five stacks of Charge. He gains a stack whenever he gets hit or consumes HP.
• Technique: Immediately attacks the enemy. When entering battle with them, it deals additional Wind damage to all adversaries by consuming 20% of his max HP.

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Kafka’s abilities in Honkai Star Rail

Kafka (Image via HoYoverse)

Kafka is a Path of Nihility character who wields the Lightning element. The following section lists her abilities:

• Basic ATK: Deals Lightning damage to a single target.
• Skill: Deals Lightning damage to a target and adjacent enemies. Additionally, deals more damage to the target that scales with its existing Damage over Time (DoT) effects.
• Ultimate: Deals Lightning damage to all enemies and inflicts Shock on them. The adversaries with the Shock state will take Lightning damage at the start of the turn. The effect lasts for two turns.
• Passive Talent: Kafka instantly launches a follow-up attack and inflicts Shock on an enemy after an ally launches a Basic ATK.
• Technique: Launches an attack on all nearby enemies. After entering battle, deals Lightning damage to all opponents with a 100% chance to inflict Shock on them.

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Blade vs Kafka: Which 5-star should you pick in Honkai Star Rail version 1.6?

Blade is the better 5-star character to pick (Image via HoYoverse)

Both the Stellaron Hunters members are powerful and dominate the meta of Honkai Star Rail after their release, but Blade hails supreme. His ability to deal colossal damage to his opposition constantly. Blade’s kit focuses on consuming HP and dealing absurd Wind damage.

If you need a character to clear activities such as Memory of Chaos easily, Blade is a phenomenal character to pick. He can deal greater damage when paired up with a support character specializing in buffs. Blade’s kit is excellent and would be viable in the long run since he can be placed in various teams.

Kafka is also an excellent character in Honkai Star Rail. Her kit allows her to deal DoTs as she treads on the Path of Nihility. She's also a decent choice for those who want an outstanding damage dealer. However, to shine on the battlefield, Kafka requires another unit specializing in inflicting DoT and can only be paired up with certain characters.