Name: Ganyu
Vision: Cryo
Birthday: 2 December
Constellation: Sinae Unicornis
Titles: Plenilune Gaze, Little Miss Ganyu (by Uncle Tian)
Ganyu may have similar skills to Amber, but make no mistake, she doesn’t suffer the same problems as her. Shortly after her release, players noticed and took advantage of her ability to deal damage, even outranking Diluc in DPS. Unfortunately, she’s not often used in the Spiral Abyss anymore, but she’s helpful in several other boss fights. This Genshin Impact Ganyu build guide will help you figure out the easiest way to play her.
Her Elemental Skill leaves a frost flower, dealing Cryo damage to enemies surrounding it. It also keeps enemies’ aggro, leaving Ganyu free to aim. If the flower shatters or its duration ends, it deals another wave of Cryo damage. How many hits it can take before shattering depends on Ganyu’s HP.
Her Elemental Burst gathers the frost and snow in the atmosphere into a Cryo Pearl. She then releases it into the sky, where it’ll rain icicles for a set duration. The rain isn’t as random as it seems. An icicle will target an enemy within its area of effect every few seconds. In contrast to Amber’s Fiery Rain, Ganyu’s Celestial Shower lasts quite a long time.
Something that sets her apart from other bow users is her charged attack. While most archer characters only have one charge level, Ganyu has two. The first level fires a normal Cryo-charged arrow. The second level fires a ‘Frostflake Arrow,’ which blooms upon hit, dealing an additional AoE hit.
Genshin Impact Ganyu Builds
Main DPS
This lets Ganyu be on the field as much as possible, dealing damage with charged shots for the most part. The best sets you can use are Shimenawa’s Reminiscence and Blizzard Strayer. Your last resort (or if you have better substats on it) is Wanderer’s Troupe.
The first is the best for this build, but the second is an excellent substitute. In the latter case, you can hold off the Crit Rate a bit because its effects can boost it alongside Cryo Resonance. You can add a bit of Elemental Mastery if you want to take advantage of Melt/Reverse Melt or Freeze.
Main Stats: ATK%, Cryo DMG Bonus, Crit Rate/DMG
Substats: Crit DMG/Rate, ATK, Energy Recharge, Elemental Mastery
Sub DPS Support
It focuses on her Burst, keeping it active for as long as possible. You’ll need some Energy Recharge for this. The artifact sets you can use are Noblesse Oblige, Emblem of Severed Fate, and Blizzard Strayer. You can also use a combination of any two of the mentioned sets. For the most damage, though, combining Noblesse and Blizzard Strayer is best.
Main Stat: ATK%/Energy Recharge, Cryo DMG Bonus, Crit Rate/DMG
Substats: Crit DMG/Rate, Energy Recharge, ATK
Budget Artifacts (4-Star)
The Martial Artist set is the one you can use for her. Make sure to use her E skill as much as possible to take advantage of its effects. You can also use a combination of The Exile and another set. If not Martial Artist, then Brave Heart or Resolution of Sojourner. Use the same stat priorities depending on which build you’re using.
Weapons
The Amos Bow is a good weapon for Ganyu, primarily if you use her charged attacks. Otherwise, use Aqua Simulacra or Elegy of the End. Other recommended bows are:
- Polar Star
- Skyward Harp
- Thundering Pulse
- Prototype Crescent
- Hamayumi
- Windblume Ode
- Blackcliff Warbow
- The Stringless
The Favonius Warbow or other Energy Recharge bows suit those on the Sub DPS Burst build. Generally, however, players are more partial to using DPS-oriented weapons on her.
Genshin Impact Ganyu Lore (Backstory)
Ganyu, as one of the long-lived Liyue adepti, has been the secretary for the Liyue Qixing for centuries. As such, her workload is something no mortal can bear. At the beginning of her story quest, Ningguang’s three aides took on Ganyu’s workload while the latter took a break from work.
It only took days (the wording is a little vague, but it probably didn’t last a week) for the three aides to ask the Traveler to look for Ganyu. They wanted her to return, so they could be free of the intense workload. During the quest, the Traveler learns of her struggle to find where she belongs.
In the end, she decided to return to the Qixing, much to the relief of the three secretaries.
Ganyu isn’t a secretary of one specific Qixing member. Instead, she’s the secretary of the whole organization. It’s no wonder that even three mortals are no match for her workload. That load has accumulated over a thousand years of duties, after all. All she has to say about her perseverance in her work is a gentle deflection that Rex Lapis has done even more for Liyue.
While all-around reliable and meticulous, certain situations fluster her enough to make a mistake. One such incident is a Rite of Descension, wherein she was late. Because the reason was embarrassing (she couldn’t choose an outfit), she could only stammer out an unconvincing excuse. Her friends worried for her and asked whether she needed a break. The rest who aren’t as close to her brushed the incident off.
There was also that time when, after having lunch with a former Tianxuan, Ganyu fell asleep in a roadside haystack. She woke later to some workers unloading the hay in Dihua Marsh. The Tianxuan almost filed a missing person report, as she had been gone for three hours. They also knew that Ganyu would never leave without telling someone.
This incident earned her a scolding and an admonishment to only ‘take a nap where it’s safe.’ Ganyu can only reply, “Isn’t the whole of Liyue safe?” It was evidence of her accurate internal clock as well. She falls asleep once the lunch hour arrives without fail, and not even the clamor of dancing hilichurls can wake her.
Most folks in Liyue don’t know about her heritage. When asked about her horns, she says it’s an ornamental heirloom as an explanation. She’s afraid that if they see the truth, they will start to shun her. Another important reason for hiding this particular truth is to prevent people from touching her horns. As Cloud Retainer states in her story quest, she used to love having them caressed.
Another secret she keeps is her diet. She once choked a giant monster that tried to eat her, which she is embarrassed by. Like a parent inadvertently embarrassing their child, Cloud Retainer recounts this story to the Traveler. Since then, Ganyu has kept a firm watch on what she eats, not wanting a repeat of that incident. It’s easier said than done in Liyue, a land of gastronomical delights.
She also wrote a detailed description of the flora in Yujing Terrace. Near the end, though, you’ll see inkblots and scratched-out text. It was supposed to be a guide on growing vegetables, which she realized was counterproductive to her diet. She reasoned that if she could grow vegetables, it’ll become harder to resist eating.
Is Ganyu Half-Adepti?
She is only half-adepti. She’s stuck in the middle, not fitting in either side. With Rex Lapis leaving Liyue’s fate to the humans, she felt that the adepti had no place in the city. However, she still didn’t quite feel at ease with the adepti.
