Zhongli is one of the most handsome Genshin Impact characters and became a fairly formidable geo DPS option thanks to the much-needed buffs he received in update 1.3. Zhongli still excels as a support character, due to his geo shield and petrification abilities, but we’ve added a suitable weapon and artifact set if you’d like to try him out in a DPS role.
If you’ve just received the polearm-wielding character from a wish and want to know how to reach his full potential, we’ve created a useful guide that includes everything you need to know to make sure your Genshin Impact Zhongli build is the best it can be. We’ll also make sure the guide is updated with any adjustments made to him in future updates.
If you’re brand new to the world of Teyvat, take a look at our Genshin Impact update guide, Genshin Impact tier list and Genshin Impact codes list to get some freebies. We’ve also created guides for other characters, here’s everything we know about Genshin Impact’s Kazuha and Genshin Impact’s Dainsleif.
When is the next Zhongli banner?
If you want to add Zhongli to your team, make sure you wish upon the Gentry of Hermitage from January 25.
The best Genshin Impact Zhongli build
As we mentioned above, Zhongli is best suited for a support role. With his geo shields, Zhongli can protect the party, and his Planet Befall skill can petrify enemies, stopping their movement for a short period of time.
Which weapon should you use?
Which weapon you choose for Zhongli should depend on which role you’d like to use him in.
As a geo sub DPS, the Staff of Homa is your best bet, followed by the Primordial Jade-Winged Spear, though Deathmatch is choice too, due to its high crit rate.
As a burst sub DPS, Staff of Homa is still top of the pile, but the replacements change to Skyward Spine and the Favonius Lance – the latter of which is probably your best bet if you’re a F2P player.
| Weapon | Effect | How to obtain |
| Staff of Homa | Bonus effect: + crit rate% Skill: increases HP by 20%, and provides an attack bonus based on 0.8% of the Zhongli’s max HP. When Zhongli’s HP is less than 50%, the attack bonus is increased by an additional 1% of max HP |
Gacha |
| Primordial Jade-Winged Spear | Bonus effect: + crit rate% Skill: increases attack by 3.2% for six seconds. Max seven stacks. This effect can only occur once every 0.3 seconds. When holding the maximum possible stacks, damage dealt is increased by 12% |
Gacha |
| Skyward Spine | Bonus effect: + energy recharge% Skill: increases crit rate by 8% and normal attack speed by 12%. Additionally, normal and charged attack hits on enemies have a 50% chance to trigger a vacuum blade that deals 40% of attack as damage in a small AoE. This effect can occur no more than once every two seconds |
Gacha |
| Deathmatch | Bonus effect: + crit rate% Skill: if there are at least two enemies nearby, attack is increased by 16%. If there are less than two enemies nearby, attack is increased by 24% |
Battle pass reward |
| Favonius Lance | Bonus effect: + energy recharge% Skill: crit hits have a 60% chance to generate a small amount of elemental particles, which will regenerate six energy for the character. Can only occur once every 12 seconds |
Gacha |
Which artifact set should you use?
The Archaic Petra set is a great choice for Zhongli, as it counters his main flaw of not generating many elemental shards.
However, Noblesse Oblige is also great for increasing your elemental burst damage (big tasty meteors go boom!) And Tenacity of the Millelith buffs Zhongli’s shield, not only through its set bonus, but also by increasing his HP.
| Artifact set | Effect | Where to get |
| Archaic Petra | Two equipped: Geo damage is boosted by 15%. Four equipped: when you obtain an elemental shard created through a crystallize reaction, all party members will gain a 35% damage bonus for the element created which lasts ten seconds |
Domain of Guyun, Sea of Clouds, Guyun Stone Forest |
| Tenacity of the Millelith | Two equipped: HP is increased by 20% Four equipped: when an elemental skill hits an opponent, the attack of all nearby party members is increased by 20% and their shield strength is increased by 30% for three seconds. This effect can be triggered once every 0.5 seconds, even when the character who is using this artifact set is not on the field |
Ridge Watch domain, Bishui Plain, Liyue |
| Noblesse Oblige | Two equipped: elemental burst damage is increased by 20% Four equipped: using an elemental burst increases all party members’ attack by 20% for 12 seconds. This effect cannot stack |
Clear Pool and Mountain Cavern domain, Minlin, Mt. Aozang |
When picking artifacts for Zhongli, you should prioritize these stats.
Main stats:
- Energy recharge, HP, or attack% for Sands of Eon
- Geo damage bonus or HP for the Goblet of Eonothem
- HP, crit rate, or crit damage for the Circlet of Logos
Sub-stats:
- HP%
- Energy recharge
- Attack%
- Crit damage
- Crit rate
To find out more about how artifacts work, check out our Genshin Impact artifacts guide.
What are Zhongli’s skills?
Active skills:
| Skill | Effect |
| Rain of Stone | Performs up to 6 spear strikes |
| Rain of Stone (charged) | Consumes a certain amount of stamina to lunge forward, damaging enemies as he goes |
| Rain of Stone (plunging) | Plunges from mid-air to strike the ground, dealing AoE when he lands |
| Dominus Lapidis (press) | Commands the earth to solidify into a Stone Stele which deals AoE geo damage. You can climb the Stone Stele and use it to block attacks |
| Dominus Lapidis (hold) | Nearby geo energy explodes, causing the following effects:
|
| Planet Befall | A meteor falls from the sky causing massive AoE geo damage and petrifying enemies |
Passive skills:
| Skill | Effect |
| Resonant Waves (unlocked at ascension one) | When your Jade Shield takes damage you will become Fortified |
| Dominance of Earth (unlocked at ascension four) | Normal, charged, and plunging attack damage is increased by 1.39% of max HP. Stone Stele, resonance, and hold damage is increased by 1.9% of max HP. Planet Befall deals additional damage equal to 33% of Zhongli’s max HP |
| Arcanum of Crystal (unlocked automatically) | Receive 15% of the ores back that are used while crafting Polearm weapons |
What are Zhongli’s constellations?
When you level up Constellations, they improve how a character performs in battle. You can level up Zhongli’s constellations by using the Stella Fortuna you obtain when receiving a duplicate Zhongli while making a wish.
| Constellation | Effect |
| Rock, the Backbone of Earth | Increases the number of Stone Steles created by Dominus Lapidis that may exist at the same time by two |
| Stone, the Cradle of Jade | Planet Befall gives nearby characters a Jade Shield |
| Jade, Shimmering through Darkness | Increases the level of Dominus Lapidis by three |
| Topaz, Unbreakable and Fearless | Increases Planet Befall’s AoE by 20% and the duration of petrification by two seconds |
| Lazuli, Herald of the Order | Increase the level of Planet Befall by three |
| Chrysos, Bounty of Dominator | When the Jade Shield takes damage, 40% of it is converted to HP. A single instance of regeneration cannot exceed 8% of the character’s max HP |
What does it cost to ascend Zhongli?
If you want Zhongli to be a truly amazing character, you’ll need to ascend him fully to boost the amount of geo damage he does. Here’s what it costs to ascend Zhongli:
| Required level | Mora | Materials |
| 20 | 20,000 | One Prithiva Topaz Sliver, three Cor Lapis, three Slime Condensate |
| 40 | 40,000 | Three Prithiva Topaz Fragment, two Basalt Pillars, ten Cor Lapis, 15 Slime Condensate |
| 50 | 60,000 | Six Prithiva Topaz Fragment, four Basalt Pillar, 20 Cor Lapis, 12 Slime Secretions |
| 60 | 80,000 | Three Prithiva Topaz Chunk, eight Basalt Pillar, 30 Cor Lapis, 18 Slime Secretions |
| 70 | 100,000 | Six Prithiva Topaz Chunk, 12 Basalt Pillar, 45 Cor Lapis, 12 Slime Concentrate |
| 80 | 120,000 | Six Prithiva Topaz Gemstone, 20 Basalt Pillar, 60 Cor Lapis, 24 Slime Concentrate |
That’s everything you need to know to have the best Genshin Impact Zhongli build. If you’re looking for something new to play, make sure you check out our list of the best mobile RPGs to keep yourself entertained.
