As one of the several free units in the game, almost every Genshin Impact player has unlocked Mondstadt’s shining idol Barbara. The recent release of her Summertime Sparkle outfit has likely made more players want to see Barbara in action on the battlefield. Luckily, Barbara is simple to build and a great fit for several different team compositions.
Barbara is a 4-star Hydro Catalyst support unit, who’s kit enables her to use some of the strongest healing skills in the game. Here’s what artifacts and weapons to use on her, what talents players should level up, and what team compositions she works well in.
How to Build Barbara in Genshin Impact
Since players can obtain Barbara for free by completing the Archon Quest Prologue Act 3, and because of her frequent appearance on limited banners, most players likely have multiple constellations of Barbara. Her C6 allows her to auto revive any characters who die in the party, which is a skill unlike any other healer in the game. However, even without her final constellation, Barbara is a great support unit for early-game content.
Barbara’s kit is focused solely around healing the party and applying the Hydro element for reactions. Since her normal attack does very little base damage, most of her usage comes from her Elemental Skill and Burst:
Elemental Skill: Let the Show Begin
Barbara’s elemental Skill creates a Melody Loop that heals the active character. If Barbara is on the field, her attacks will heal the party. If another character is on the field, they will be passively healed for the duration of the skill.
Elemental Burst: Shining Miracle
Barbara’s Elemental Burst is the strongest healing skill in the game. Using this burst instantly heals the entire party, and the healing done scales with Barbara’s Max HP.
Since players are going to want their DPS units to spend more time on the field than Barbara, players should focus on leveling up their Elemental Skill, and then her Elemental Burst first. Leveling up her basic attack talent is optional, but not necessary for Barbara to function properly as support.
For artifacts, a 4-piece Maiden’s Beloved set maximizes the healing Barbara can do in the party. This 4-piece set increases character healing by 15% and increases all healing received by the party from an Elemental Skill or Burst by 20%. These artifact buffs are perfect for Barbara, making this set her best in slot.
Since Barbara’s healing capabilities scale with her Max HP, players should prioritize HP as the main stat for her Hourglass and Cup. Her Hat can either have HP or Healing Bonus as the main stat. Her substats should also prioritize HP%, then flat HP. Players can also equip her with some Energy Recharge and Elemental Mastery, to increase the speed at which she gets her Burst back, and increase the damage done by any Elemental Reactions she procs on the field.
For her weapon, the Prototype Amber has an HP boost substat, making it a great choice for increasing Barbara’s healing capabilities. Players can also use the 3-Star weapon Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers. While a 3-Star weapon may seem underwhelming, this weapon provides an HP boost, as well as a 24% ATK increase for the rest of the party, making it a great support weapon.
Finally, team compositions that focus on Elemental Reactions are great with Barbara. Any Pyro DPS unit can use Barbara’s Elemental Skill to proc Vaporize reactions, which do major damage. Because of this, Pyro characters like Klee and Diluc are great DPS options. For a Sub-DPS, another Hydro character (Xingqiu is a great option) will enact the Hydro Elemental Resonance, increasing incoming healing by 30%.
It’s important to remember that there’s no one way to build a character. Players can swap out artifacts and weapons depending on their playstyle, and most team compositions can work well with a reliable healer like Barbara. Players don’t need super rare 5-Star Weapons or other DPS units to build a great team around Barbara Support.
Genshin Impact is available now on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Mobile, and PC.