Honkai: Star Rail Gives Away Archer from Fate/Stay Night for Free

The collaboration that everyone has been anticipating for some time has finally arrived. HSRxFateStay. As part of the event, Hoyo is giving us one of the characters for free. Archer. However, unlike Hoyo’s last collab, the free character is actually decent.

How Does Archer Work

Archer is a 5-Star Quantum Hunt character. As such, he does 1 thing at a time, he does it very well, and then he moves on (points if you get the reference).

Skill Point Drain

His main form of damage is by using his Skill, which can be cast up to 5 times. The first 2 casts of his Skill will increase his damage by 100% (max of 200%). This bonus will last until he stops being able to use his Skill.

Each use of his Skill consumes 2 Skill Points. This means you need to have a grand total of 10 Skill Points at the read if you want to use this ability to its full potential. Fortunately, thanks to his first Trace Ability, Archer provides the team with 2 additional Skill Points just by existing. That brings the total up to 7. Only 3 more to go.

Unlimited Bladeworks Indeed

Archer’s Ultimate, by itself, is nothing more than a massive, single-target nuke. However, using his Ultimate gives him 2 Charges for his Ultimate.

When an ally attacks a target, Archer consumes 1 Charge to immediately launch a Follow-up ATK against them and recovers 1 Skill Point. If the target dies, the Follow-up ATK will hit a random enemy. If Archer uses his Technique to start a battle, he will have 2 Charge off the bat. If not, he will only have 1. He can hold a maximum of 4.

What To Build on Archer

CRIT DMG, CRIT Rate, ATK, and SPD. Pretty much what you would expect from a DPS character, honestly. Get a Quantum DMG Orb. His best relics are the Genius of Brilliant Stars set, matched with the Rutilant Arena.

For Light Cones, his personal one (which you can obtain for free by spending 200 Star Rail Special Passes in general) is the best option, but if you can’t get it, try either Cruising in the Stellar Sea or In the Night for 5-Star options and either See You at the End or Return to Darkness for 4-stars.

Who Does Archer Synergize With

Sparkle. She’s his best buddy. With her, you can get your Skill Points up to 9. Apart from her, any other support is acceptable. Bit your poison. The last shot should go to a healer or shielder. Again, you can pick your own poison.