Guide to Keqing in Genshin Impact: best builds and leveling

In Genshin Impact Keqing is 5 star character wielding a one-handed sword. She is able to perfectly fulfill the role of an elemental or physical DPS (damager) in a team. If you are interested in her best builds, as well as the most suitable weapons and artifacts for her, then check out our guide.

Characteristics of Keqing

Skills

Her basic attack is called "Normal Attack: Yunlai Swordsmanship" and allows up to five normal sword swings. If you charge it, you will be able to carry out two quick strikes. When attacked from the air, this cat girl rushes to the ground, dealing damage to all enemies in her path, and finally performing a powerful AoE strike.

When using the Stellar Restoration elemental skill, Keqing will be able to throw a dagger at an enemy, dealing Electro damage to them and setting a mark at the point of impact. The character can move to this mark when re-casting the skill, performing a slash in the process. If you use a charged attack, then the heroine will perform a series of quick swings of the weapon at the location of the mark.

You can also hold down the button (key) of the ability to independently choose the place where the dagger falls. As for her Starward Sword Sword elemental blast, she strikes lightning at the target area, dealing Electro damage. She then strikes nearby enemies with her blade.

Thus, Keqing is more suitable for long-term control rather than one-time application. In this case, with the help of it it will be possible to inflict huge damage to any enemy. As for passive skills, they look like this:

Thundering Penance - If you use Return of the Star for 5 seconds again while using Thundering Stilite, all Light and Charged Hits of the heroine begin to deal lightning damage.
Aristocratic Dignity - Casting Skypath Sword increases your critical strike chance and Obtaining Energy by 15%. The bonus is applied for 8 seconds.
Land’s Overseer - Expeditions to Liyue last 25 percent less.

Talents

Keqing low-level talents increase her combat potential quite well, but she will need level 4 and 6 perks to maximize her exposure. Unfortunately, to open them, you need the Serendipity of the character (randomly).

Thundering Might - Casting Return of the Star again causes the heroine to inflict AoE Electro damage equal to 50% of her attack power at the start and end of her movement.
Heavy Taxes - Simple and charged hits against Electro opponents can cause an elemental particle to spawn.
Foreseen Reformation - Increases the skill level of Starward Sword by 3.
Attunement - After using an elemental reaction related to electricity, the character's attack power is increased by 25% for 10 seconds.
Blink of the Stars - Increases the skill level of Stellar Restoration by 3.
Tenacious Star - Using any attacks and skills grants a 6% bonus to Electro damage for 8 seconds.

How to play Keqing

Let's look at its strengths and weaknesses first. The benefits of this character include:

Lightning attacks can be used to create elemental reactions that deal massive damage.
Melee attacks are easy to use and can deal significant damage.
Allows you to attack enemies, both from close and from a long distance, so it is ideal for long battles with different opponents.

However, it was not without drawbacks. These include:

The charged attack requires slightly more stamina than other heroes using a one-handed sword.
You need to reach at least the 2nd phase of Ascension to receive permanent Electro damage.

Great for dungeon crawling

In most dungeons, you have to fight hordes of opponents, and Keqing, even among other sword users, is famous for incredibly fast attacks, which also deal Electro damage (always useful for creating elemental reactions). All these qualities make this character perhaps the best choice for completing dungeons.

She also has an elemental skill that allows her to attack from a distance, allowing players to quickly adapt her to different situations. This also means that Keqing doesn't need to rely on the other members of the party, as she can take care of herself.

As an archer, can hit enemy weak spots

The elemental skill gives this catgirl the same advantage as characters with a bow. It is about the ability to shoot at the weak points of opponents. You will be able to independently aim at vulnerable points and attack them, without the need to switch to archers. With it, you can easily hunt bosses and easily increase your Adventure Rank.

However, the elemental skill has a cooldown (cooldown), so it cannot be used all the time. In addition, unlike bows, the first time you select a skill, it will aim at the enemy, and shoot only the second time, so the attack time will directly depend on you.

The Stellar Restoration allows you to teleport

Keqing elemental skill can be used not only in combat, but also when exploring the world. For example, you can quickly climb small ledges, overcome various obstacles, and even reach areas that you would normally not be able to get to.

Best builds for Keqing

Crit Boost Build

This build is based on the heroine's high base critical damage and aims to increase the chance of landing critical hits when using an elemental explosion. In this case, as a weapon should be taken:

Primordial Jade Cutter (5-star) - Increases your life bar by 20 percent and grants an attack bonus equal to 1.2 percent of your character's maximum health.
Black Sword (4-star) - Increases damage from charged and normal strikes by 20%. Crits restore health equal to 60% of attack power. The effect occurs every 5 seconds.
Prototype Rancour (4-star, craftable) - When hit with a simple or charged strike, defense and attack power are increased by 5 percent for 6 seconds. The effect stacks up to four times and appears every 0.3 seconds. Budget option for Keqing.
Fillet Blade (3-star, drops from chests) - Gives a 50% chance to deal 240% damage to an enemy. Fires once every 15 seconds. Another budget alternative to rarer weapons.

As for artifacts, try on the following sets:

Gladiator’s Finale - 2 items: Increase attack power by 18%. 4-Piece: Increases damage from basic hits by 35% when using a spear, sword, or two-handed sword. Can be obtained from elite bosses.
Bloodstained Chivalry - 2 items: increase physical damage by 25 percent; 4 items: Increase your Charged Strike damage by 50% when you kill an enemy and make it free in terms of stamina cost for 10 seconds. Can be obtained from the Clear Pool and Mountain Cavern dungeon. We advise you to take 2 pieces of Gladiator's End and 2 pieces of Blood Knight.
Berserker - 2 items: increase the chance of inflicting crits by 12 percent; 4 items: If the character's health bar drops to 70 percent, then the chance increases by 24 percent. Can be found in Temple of the Lion. Budget option for Keqing.
Martial Artist - 2 items: Increases damage from charged and simple hits by 15 percent; 4 items: After using an elemental skill, damage from charged and simple strikes is increased by 25 percent for 8 seconds. Dropped from Wu Wan's Hidden Palace dungeon. Another budget set.

Build Electro DPS

This build not only increases the overall damage dealt when fighting Electro enemies, but also increases the damage dealt by Electro-based elemental reactions. In this case, in the form of a weapon, you can use:

Primordial Jade Cutter (5-star) - Increases your life bar by 20 percent and grants an attack bonus equal to 1.2 percent of your character's maximum health.
Black Sword (4-star) - Increases damage from charged and normal strikes by 20%. Crits restore health equal to 60% of attack power. The effect occurs every 5 seconds.
Summit Shaper (5-star) - Increases shield strength by 20%. Upon hit, increases Attack Rating by 4% for 8 seconds. The effect stacks up to five times and occurs every 0.3 seconds. When the character is protected by a shield, attack is increased by 100%.
Lion's Roar (4-star) - Increases damage by 20% when fighting enemies that are under the influence of Electro or Pyro elements.

If we talk about artifacts, we recommend collecting a set of the following two sets:

Thunderous Roar of Fury - 2 items: Increases Electro damage bonus by 15%. Can be obtained in Dungeon Midsummer Courtyard.
Gladiator’s Finale - 2 items: Increases attack power by 18%. Dropped by elite bosses.

You can also collect one of the following set:

Thundersoother - 2 items: Increase resistance to Electro by 40 percent; 4 items: Increase damage dealt by 35% when fighting Electro enemies. You can also get it in the Midsummer Courtyard dungeon.

Combination with characters

Given the element of the heroine and the ability to create powerful elemental reactions, a good team can be assembled from:

Primary DPS: Keqing
Secondary DPS: Xingqiu or Ganyu
Traveling Doctor: Barbara or Qiqi
Support: Venti, Bennett or Zhongli

Leveling Keqing

How to improve skills

You can do this by finding the following materials:

Teachings, guidebooks and philosophies about "Prosperity" - mined in the Taishan Mansion Dungeon on Mondays and Thursdays.
Whopperflower Nectar, Shimmering Nectar and Energy Nectar - Drop from Jumpers and upgraded with Alchemy.
Ring of Boreas - Dropped by the elite boss Lupus Borealis.

Elevation

You will need the following unique materials:

1st Ascension (Max Level 20) - 1 Vajrada Amethyst Sliver, 3 Cor Lapis, 3 Whopperflower Nectar.
2nd Ascension (Max Level 40) - 3 Vajrad Amethyst Fragments, 2 Lightning Prism, 10 Cor Lapis, 15 Whopperflower Nectar.
3rd Ascension (Max Level 50) - 6 Vajrad Amethyst Fragments, 4 Lightning Prism, 20 Cor Lapis, 12 Shimmering Nectar.
4th Ascension (max level 60) - 3 pieces of Vajrad amethyst, 8 Lightning Prism, 30 Cor Lapis, 18 Shimmering Nectar.
5th Ascension (max level 70) - 6 pieces of Vajrad amethyst, 12 Lightning Prism, 45 Cor Lapis, 12 Energy Nectar.
6th Ascension (max level 80) - 6 precious Vajrad amethysts, 20 Lightning Prism, 60 Cor Lapis, 24 Energy Nectar.

Vajrada Amethyst and Lightning Prism drop from Elite Boss named Electro Hypostasis. Amethysts also drop from Ancient Geovishap And Azhdahi. The Cor Lapis is a local curiosity of Liyue - we talked about its presence in separate guide.