Will Yaoyao Be Free? Your Comprehensive Guide to Genshin Impact’s Adorable Dendro Healer
The short answer is yes, Yaoyao was available for free during a specific event. During Version 3.4, players could obtain Yaoyao for free through The Exquisite Night Chimes event, a Lantern Rite festival celebration. This event provided an opportunity to add this valuable four-star Dendro character to your team without spending any Primogems on the gacha banner. However, this event has passed, and currently, Yaoyao is not available for free anymore. She can only be acquired by wishing on banners where she is featured as a rate-up four-star character.
Understanding Yaoyao: A Deep Dive
Yaoyao quickly became a favorite amongst Genshin Impact players due to her adorable design and valuable skillset. As a four-star Dendro polearm user, she brought much-needed healing and Dendro application to the game, especially for players lacking other Dendro options like Nahida. Her healing scales with HP, making her relatively easy to build and maximizing her effectiveness in keeping your team alive.
Yaoyao’s Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths:
- Reliable Healer: Yaoyao provides consistent healing, especially during her burst, making her a valuable addition to teams that need sustain.
- Dendro Application: Her Elemental Skill and Burst apply Dendro to enemies, enabling reactions like Bloom, Quicken, and Spread.
- Ease of Build: Scaling with HP makes her easy to gear, especially for newer players.
- F2P Friendly: While not currently free, as a four-star character, she’s more accessible than five-star options.
Weaknesses:
- Healing Output: While reliable, her healing isn’t as high as some other dedicated healers like Bennett or Kokomi.
- Dendro Application: While she applies Dendro, it’s not as consistent or wide-ranging as some other Dendro characters.
- Damage Output: Yaoyao’s primary role is healing and Dendro application, not dealing damage.
Optimizing Yaoyao’s Build
To get the most out of Yaoyao, focus on building her with HP and Energy Recharge. Here’s a quick guide:
- Artifacts: Prioritize artifacts with HP%, Energy Recharge%, and Healing Bonus. A 4-piece Tenacity of the Millelith set is a great option for buffing your team’s ATK, or a 4-piece Deepwood Memories to shred Dendro resistance.
- Weapon: Favonius Lance is an excellent choice for generating energy for the team. Black Tassel is a budget-friendly option that increases HP.
- Talents: Level up her Elemental Skill and Elemental Burst talents for improved healing.
Yaoyao FAQs: Everything You Need to Know
Here are 15 frequently asked questions about Yaoyao to further enhance your understanding of this beloved character:
1. Is Yaoyao still available for free?
No, Yaoyao is no longer available for free through the Exquisite Night Chimes event. That event was specific to Version 3.4 of Genshin Impact. She is currently only obtainable through wishing on banners.
2. What banner will Yaoyao be on next?
The specific banners featuring Yaoyao are subject to change based on Hoyoverse’s update schedule. Keep an eye on official Genshin Impact announcements and community forums for information about upcoming banners. Usually when a 4 star character gets released, it’s usually a while before they get released again on another banner.
3. Is Yaoyao worth pulling for?
Yes, Yaoyao is worth pulling for, especially if you need a Dendro healer. She’s a reliable source of healing and Dendro application, making her a valuable asset for various team compositions. She’s an extremely strong character and very worth the investment.
4. What are Yaoyao’s best team compositions?
Yaoyao excels in teams that utilize Dendro reactions like Bloom, Quicken, and Spread. She can be paired with characters like Nilou (Bloom), Alhaitham (Spread), or Keqing (Quicken). Hyperbloom teams are also an incredibly strong option.
5. What are Yaoyao’s best artifacts?
The 4-piece Tenacity of the Millelith set is generally considered a strong choice, providing HP and an ATK buff for the team. The 4-piece Deepwood Memories is also strong to shred Dendro Resistance. Ocean-Hued Clam can also be an option.
6. What are Yaoyao’s best weapons?
Favonius Lance is an excellent choice for energy generation. Black Tassel is a budget-friendly option for increasing HP. There are many strong options for her, experiment and find one that works best for you!
7. How does Yaoyao’s healing work?
Yaoyao’s healing scales with her Max HP. Both her Elemental Skill and Elemental Burst provide healing based on her HP.
8. Is Yaoyao better than Collei?
Yaoyao is generally considered better than Collei for healing and survivability. Her healing output is higher, and she provides more consistent Dendro application.
9. Is Yaoyao a DPS character?
No, Yaoyao is primarily a healer and support character. Her focus is on keeping the team alive and enabling Dendro reactions, not dealing damage. While DPS Yaoyao is hilarious, it is not ideal for actually clearing difficult content.
10. How much Energy Recharge does Yaoyao need?
Yaoyao generally needs around 160-200% Energy Recharge to consistently use her Elemental Burst.
11. Is Yaoyao C6 worth it?
Yes, Yaoyao’s C6 is worth it, as it enhances her healing and Dendro application by increasing the AoE of her White Jade Radishes. Constellations can significantly boost a character’s power, so they’re always worth aiming for if you like the character!
12. What talents should I prioritize for Yaoyao?
Prioritize leveling up her Elemental Skill (Raphanus Seed) and Elemental Burst (Moonjade Descent) talents for improved healing.
13. Is Yaoyao good in the Spiral Abyss?
Yes, Yaoyao is good in the Spiral Abyss, especially for teams that need a Dendro healer.
14. How does the Pity system work in Genshin Impact?
The Pity system guarantees a 4-star character or weapon every 10 wishes and a 5-star character or weapon every 90 wishes on character event banners. 5 Star banners may also have a soft pity, which has a higher chance of getting the 5 star the closer you get to 90 pulls.
15. What is the 50/50 system in Genshin Impact?
The 50/50 system means that when you pull a 5-star character on a character event banner, there’s a 50% chance it will be the featured character. If you don’t get the featured character, your next 5-star character pull is guaranteed to be the featured character. 4 stars follow a similar pattern, but they are guaranteed to be on the banner if you have pulled another 4 star before.
Leveling and Talent Priorities
Optimizing Yaoyao involves more than just artifacts and weapons. It’s crucial to prioritize leveling her up to maximize her HP and healing potential. Aim for at least Level 80, if not Level 90, for optimal performance. As mentioned before, focus on leveling her Elemental Skill and Burst talents for increased healing output. Normal attacks aren’t really useful, so neglect those.
Deeper Dive into Team Compositions: Beyond the Basics
While the FAQ touched on team compositions, let’s expand further. Yaoyao’s flexibility allows her to fit into various team archetypes.
- Bloom Teams (with Nilou): Nilou’s Bountiful Blooms scale off HP, synergizing perfectly with Yaoyao’s HP-scaling healing.
- Quicken/Spread Teams (with Alhaitham or Keqing): Yaoyao provides consistent Dendro application and healing to sustain the team while they trigger Aggravate and Spread reactions.
- Hyperbloom Teams (with Raiden Shogun or Kuki Shinobu): Yaoyao enables Dendro Cores for Hyperbloom, while an Electro character triggers the reaction.
- Mono-Dendro: While less common, a mono-Dendro team with characters like Nahida and Alhaitham could potentially be very strong.
Experimentation is key! Genshin Impact is all about finding the team composition that suits your playstyle and character preferences.
The Enduring Appeal of Yaoyao
Yaoyao’s continued popularity stems from her accessibility, adorable design, and valuable utility. While she’s not the absolute best healer in the game, her consistent healing, Dendro application, and relatively easy build make her an excellent choice for both new and veteran players. Keep an eye on future banners and events for opportunities to add this little green bundle of joy to your Genshin Impact roster.
Learning more about the mechanisms that make games engaging and educational like Genshin Impact can be found at the Games Learning Society website: https://www.gameslearningsociety.org/.