Genshin Impact Ayato build: best weapons, artifacts, and teams

The best Genshin Impact Ayato build gives your team a powerful Hydro character who works in a different way than most. Ayato’s skill basically just powers up his normal attack, and while his talents scale off HP, you want to focus on his attack stat and critical rate instead. While that sounds a bit fussy, putting together a team for Ayato is pretty easy thanks to his burst, which applies Hydro in a broad area, and how little setup he needs to work properly. 

We’ve laid out the best Ayato build in Genshin Impact 4.2, including his top weapons and the right Artifacts to make him shine.

Genshin Impact Ayato - Best weapons

1. Haran Geppaku Futsu (5 stars)
2. Primordial Jade Cutter (5 stars)
3. Light of Foliar Incision (5 stars)
4. Mistsplitter Reforged (5 stars)
5. The Black Sword (4 stars)
6. The Flute (4 stars)
7. Wolf Fang (4 stars)
8. Harbinger of Dawn (3 stars)

Like most 5-star characters, Ayato has a signature weapon that works best for him, the Haran Geppaku Futsu. The 5-star weapon increases the wearer’s elemental damage and gives the wearer Wavespike stacks when party members use their skill. Once you get two stacks, your normal attack damage goes up.

We picked the next three swords primarily for their crit buffs. Primordial Jade Cutter is your best bet if you have it, since it raises Ayato’s critical hit rate. His bonus stat is critical damage, so it makes for a nice complement. Wolf Fang also boosts his crit rate, though the passive effect is a bit pointless. Ayato’s skill counts as normal attack damage.

The Black Sword increases Ayato’s survivability with its HP restoration effect and bumps up his normal attack damage, and The Flute deals extra damage when Ayato uses normal attacks, which is basically all the time.

Genshin Impact Ayato - Best Artifacts and substats

1. 4x Echoes of an Offering
2. 4x Heart of Depth
3. 2x Heart of Depth and 2x Echoes of an Offering

Echoes of an Offering is an excellent set for Ayato. The two-piece effect raises the wearer’s attack, and the four-piece effect triggers a normal attack buff based on the user’s overall attack stat. You can get this set in Liyue’s Chasm.

If you have some spare Heart of Depth lying around, you could opt for that instead and get a Hydro bonus from the two-piece effect and a smaller attack buff for your normal attacks.

Mixing two pieces of both sets works as well and gives Ayato a solid attack and Hydro buff.

Ideally, you’ll want to prioritize these for Ayato’s substats:

• Sands: Attack or energy recharge
• Goblet: Attack or Hydro bonus
• Circlet: Critical hit rate or critical damage

 

Genshin Impact Ayato - Best teams

You’ve got a few choices for Ayato’s teams.

Ayato freeze team

Ayato

Ganyu/Ayaka

Venti, Sucrose, Lynette, or Kazuha

Diona (C2, ideally)

Ayato and Ganyu, or his sister Ayaka, ensure that enemies are almost permanently frozen when fighting against this composition. Diona triggers Cryo resonance and raises the critical hit rate against frozen enemies, and she’s also a source of healing, shielding, and energy recharge. Your Anemo character of choice triggers Swirl and reduces the enemies’ Cryo or Hydro resistance.

Ayato shock team

• Ayato
• Beidou
• Fischl
• Kokomi or Barbara

Ayato and Kokomi keep Hydro present at all times, him through his burst and her through her skill. Kokomi stays off-field most of the time and heals the team with her skill as well. Barbara can fill this slot, though you need to get closer to enemies for Hydro to take effect.

Beidou and Fischl have a similar division of roles. Fischl’s skill summons Oz and distributes Electro even when she’s not on-field, while Beidou’s shield deals Electro damage and protects Ayato, who will be out on the field most of the time.

Ayato carry team

• Ayato
• Kazuha, Sucrose, or Lynette
• Yun Jin
• Bennett

This team makes the most of Ayato’s unique skills. Yun Jin creates a range of buffs with her abilities, and her burst increases the party’s normal attack damage – perfect for Ayato. Kazuha or the Anemo character of your choice reduces enemy resistance to Hydro through Swirl effects, and Bennett is here to heal the party and give yet another attack buff with his burst.

Written by Marco Wutz and Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF.