Genshin Impact | Best Chongyun Builds

He’s the best exorcist in all of Liyue…who has never actually seen a ghost. He’s also a 4-star Cryo Claymore user with looks as icy as his element. That’s right — today, we’re tackling the best Chongyun builds in Genshin Impact!

Let’s get started.

Building a Strong Character: Chongyun

Before we get into specific Chongyun builds, let’s go over some basic assumptions. Firstly, when talking about builds, we assume characters and weapons are fully leveled. That means all passive talents are unlocked and can be fully leveled as well.

Secondly, we assume constellations and weapons will be at their base level/refinement. It can be difficult to level up constellations or refine weapons without spending money, so we’re keeping it free-to-play friendly for the most part.

Lastly, it’s important to remember that the best Chongyun builds will be the ones you actually enjoy playing. Don’t worry about the meta — just do whatever’s the most fun for you as a player! It’s a game, after all, and it should be enjoyable. We’re just here to give you some ideas so you can improve your experience.

Now that we’re all on the same page, let’s get into the builds!

Best Chongyun Builds: The Basics

In general, there are some things to keep in mind while playing Chongyun. No matter his role in your team, you will want to primarily use his Elemental Skill, Spirit Blade: Chongua’s Layered Frost to attack. Not only does it have the most DMG potential out of his talents, it can also buff the rest of your team. 

His slow attack speed makes it hard for him to deal much damage and can also make him susceptible to interruption, so it’s better to use him to buff other characters who can attack more quickly. Using weapons that can either also buff your party or at least decrease Chongyun’s Elemental Skill cooldown are ideal, but there are other weapon options out there.

Remembering that buff will make your entire team more efficient overall, and also help you deal the most damage with Chongyun himself. While he does have some DPS potential, his best team roles are going to be sub-DPS and support, so we’ll be focusing on those Chongyun builds. 

Materials

In order to get Chongyun into fighting shape, it will take a lot of resources. Regardless of which of our Chongyun builds you follow, it will take some time to get the base materials to level him up so get ready to grind. 

You’ll need to face and defeat the Cryo Regisvine over twenty times in order to get enough Hoarfrost Cores, and that’s only if you have enough Shivada Jade. Once you’ve gathered enough to ascend Chongyun, you can turn your attention to talent and weapon materials and eventually to artifact hunting.

Ascension Materials

To fully ascend Chongyun, you will need:

• 420k Mora
• 46 Hoarfrost Core (4-star boss drop item)
• 1 Shivada Jade Sliver (2-star ascension material)
• 9 Shivada Jade Fragment (3-star ascension material)
• 9 Shivada Jade Chunk (4-star ascension material)
• 6 Shivada Jade Gemstone (5-star ascension material)
• 168 Cor Lapis (1-star item)
• 18 Damaged Mask (1-star enemy drop)
• 30 Stained Mask (2-star enemy drop)
• 36 Ominous Mask (3-star enemy drop)

Luckily, most ascension materials aren’t too hard to come by, especially 1-star enemy drops like Damaged Masks. The gem ascension materials can be another story, though. 

Even after collecting enough Hoarfrost Cores, you may be short on Shivada jade. Thankfully, Hoyoverse has an item that can help you out. With enough of the 2-star item Dust of Azoth, you can convert other elemental gem ascension materials into Shivada Jade. Using the Alchemy Table, players can convert slivers, Fragments, Chunks, and Gemstones if they have a surplus in other ascension materials. Sliver conversions require 1 Dust of Azoth, Fragments require 3, Chunks require 9, and Gemstones require 27. 

Dust of Azoth can be purchased in the shop via Paimon’s Bargains using Masterless Stardust. 

Talent Materials

To fully level one of Chongyun’s talents, you will need:

• 1,625,500 Mora
• 6 Damaged Mask (1-star enemy drop)
• 22 Stained Mask (2-star enemy drop)
• 31 Ominous Mask (3-star enemy drop)
• 3 Teachings of Diligence (2-star talent material)
• 21 Guide to Diligence (3-star talent material)
• 38 Philosophies of Diligence (4-star talent material)
• 6 Dvalin’s Sigh (5-star weekly boss drop)
• 1 Crown of Insight (5-star talent material)

The most difficult items to obtain for talents are typically the weekly boss drops. Unless you’ve been playing for a while, most players won’t have many weekly boss drops saved up. Luckily, you’ll be able to use whatever you have from a specific boss thanks to the 4-star item Dream Solvent.

With Dream Solvent, you can convert other weekly boss drop talent items into whichever you need (as long as it’s from the same boss). In Chongyun’s case, you’ll be able to convert the items Dvalin’s Claw or Dvalin’s Plume into Dvalin’s Sigh. 

Dream Solvent is also dropped by weekly bosses, though you can get it from any of the weekly bosses (rather than being limited to just one).

Talents

Whether you’re using Chongyun more on or off the field, you’re going to want to level up his talents. Your first priority should be his Elemental Skill, regardless of which of our Chongyun builds you decide to follow.

After his Elemental Skill, the next talent to level up will be his Elemental Burst. You can level his Normal Attack talent too if you like, but his attack speed is pretty slow and doesn’t deal a whole lot of damage. 

1. Elemental Skill: Spirit Blade: Chonghua’s Layered Frost

When using his Elemental Skill, Chongyun hits the ground with his Claymore and creates a Cryo explosion. This creates an AOE around him that deals Cryo DMG. After a short delay, a Chongua Frost Field is created. Within this field, all Sword, Polearm, and Claymore-wielding characters will have their weapons infused with Cryo.

At Level 10, Spirit Blade: Chongua’s Layered Frost will deal 309% Skill DMG and will infuse Cryo for up to 2.9 seconds. The Chonghua Frost Field created lasts for 10 seconds, and the skill cooldown lasts for 15 seconds. The Cryo DMG dealt is actually higher than Chongyun’s Elemental Burst, and the Cryo infusion to other party members’ weapons is a good way to create Elemental Reactions with their Elemental Skills. 

Chongyun’s Elemental Skill alone is decent but it’s vastly improved by his Passive Talents. Steady Breathing and Rimechaser Blade both improve the effects of his Elemental Skill and make it worth prioritizing. 

Steady Breathing increases ATK SPD of Sword, Claymore, and Polearm characters within the Chunghua Frost Field by 8%, which is especially helpful for Claymore characters who typically have slower ATK SPD. Rimechaser Blade buffs Chongyun’s Elemental Skill more directly by creating another spirit blade and dealing 100% Skill DMG as AOE Cryo DMG. Enemies hit by the blade will also have their Cryo RES decreased by 10%. 

2. Elemental Burst: Spirit Blade: Cloud-Parting Star

Using his Elemental Burst, Chongyun performs secret hand seals and summons three giant spirit blades. The blades will fall one by one and explode after a short delay. Exploding spirit blades deal AOE Cryo DMG and push enemies away. 

At Level 10, Chongyun’s Elemental Burst deals 256% DMG and has a cooldown of 12 seconds. This could mean using his Elemental Burst more frequently than his Elemental Skill with the right build, but we wouldn’t recommend that given the energy cost and relatively low damage. 

At Constellation three, it’s possible to raise Chongyun’s Elemental Burst past Level 10, which would increase the Cryo DMG dealt by his spirit blades up to 302% at Level 13. While his Elemental Burst can theoretically be leveled up to Level 15, as of Version 2.7, there is no way to do so.

3. Normal Attack: Demonbane

Chongyun’s last active talent is his Normal Attack. With it, he performs four consecutive strikes with his claymore. He can consume stamina to perform Charged Attacks, which will cause him to perform spinning attacks that can hit multiple nearby enemies. At the end of his spin, he will perform a more powerful hit and also deal more DMG.

When attacking from the air, Chongyun will perform a Plunging Attack. Depending on how high up he is in the air, the DMG dealt will range between 147% and 368%. Unfortunately, Plunging Attacks aren’t the easiest to use in combat often, so you’ll mostly be performing Normal and Charged Attacks.

At Level 10, Chongyun’s hits deal between 138% and 200% DMG to enemies. His Charged Attack spin deals 111% and 201% when he ends his spin. 

Weapons

Now onto our recommended weapons for our best Chongyun builds in Genshin Impact. The 5-star Wolf’s Gravestone is the best option overall, but since 5-star weapons are hard to come by, we’ve also included some 4-star recommendations. Please keep in mind that your mileage may vary depending on your playstyle!

1. Wolf’s Gravestone: 5-Star Claymore

If you’re really committed to your Chongyun build, you’ll want to give him the 5-star Wolf’s Gravestone claymore. It has a high base ATK, going all the way up to 608, which is one of the highest base ATK for claymores overall. As of 2.7, only two other claymores have higher ATK, and both are 5-star weapons.

The biggest reason to use the Wolf’s Gravestone isn’t its high ATK, though — it’s the Wolfish Tracker effect. When equipped, ATK is increased by 20% and attacks made against enemies with less than 30% HP increases all party members’ ATK by 40% for 12 seconds. It’s great for boosting other members of your party and increasing your DPS character’s DMG output which is why it’s great for both sub-DPS and Support Chongyun builds. 

For players really committed, higher refinement levels further increase the ATK boost by 40% base and 80% against low HP enemies. 

To fully ascend the Wolf’s Gravestone, you will need:

• 225k Mora
• 5 Fetters of the Dandelion Gladiator (2-star weapon material)
• 14 Chains of the Dandelion Gladiator (3-star weapon material)
• 14 Shackles of the Dandelion Gladiator (4-star weapon material)
• 6 Dream of the Dandelion Gladiator (5-star weapon material)
• 23 Chaos Device (2-star enemy drop)
• 27 Chaos Circuit (3-star enemy drop)
• 41 Chaos Core (4-star enemy drop)
• 15 Divining Scroll (1-star enemy drop)
• 23 Sealed Scroll (2-star enemy drop)
• 27 Forbidden Curse Scroll (3-star enemy drop)

2. Sacrificial Greatsword: 4-Star Claymore

After the Wolf’s Gravestone, the second best option for Chongyun will be the 4-star Sacrificial Greatsword. 

While the Sacrificial Greatsword does switch up the way you will want to play Chongyun, it’s great for both his Elemental Skill and Elemental Burst. This claymore’s secondary stat is Energy Recharge, which will help players recoup energy costs more quickly than weapons with ATK% stats. 

The Sacrificial Greatsword’s main effect, Composed, will also allow you to somewhat get around Chongyun’s long Elemental Skill cooldowns. After dealing damage to an enemy with an Elemental Skill, there is a 40% chance the Sacrificial Greatsword will end the cooldown. The effect can occur once every 30 seconds. At higher refinement levels, the chance is increased to 80% every 16 seconds.

Since Chongyun relies so much on his Elemental Skill, having a way to shorten or end his long skill cooldown is really helpful no matter his role in your party. 

To fully ascend the Sacrificial Greatsword, you will need:

• 150k Mora
• 3 Boreal Wolf’s Milk Tooth (2-star weapon material)
• 9 Boreal Wolf’s Cracked Tooth (3-star weapon material)
• 9 Boreal Wolf’s Broken Fang (4-star weapon material)
• 4 Boreal Wolf’s Nostalgia (5-star weapon material)
• 15 Dead Ley Line Branch (2-star enemy drop)
• 18 Dead Ley Line Leaves (3-star enemy drop)
• 27 Ley Line Sprout (4-star enemy drop)
• 10 Firm Arrowhead (1-star enemy drop)
• 15 Sharp Arrowhead (2-star enemy drop)
• 18 Weathered Arrowhead (3-star enemy drop) 

3. Prototype Archaic: 4-Star Claymore

For players wanting a more free-to-play friendly weapon option for their Chongyun builds, we recommend the Prototype Archaic. Unlike the Wolf’s Gravestone or the Sacrificial Greatsword, there’s no need to wish for this 4-star claymore.

The base ATK is a respectable 565 at Level 90, and the secondary stat also raises ATK by 27.6%. The Prototype Archaic’s main effect, Crush, has a chance to deal 240% ATK DMG on Normal or Charged Attack hits. The DMG is dealt in a small AOE and can occur once every 15 seconds. At higher refinement levels, the ATK DMG is increased to 480%, though the effect can still only occur once every 15 seconds. 

While the stats are meh, the best thing about Prototype Archaic is that it is a forgeable weapon. To make it, all you’ll need to do is visit a blacksmith and forge it there. You can visit Wagner in Monstadt, Master Zhao in Liyue, or Hajime in Inazuma to do so. 

To forge the Prototype Archaic, you will need:

• 1 Northlander Claymore Billet (4-star forging material)
• 50 Crystal Chunk (1-star item)
• 50 White Iron (1-star item)
• 500 Mora

Claymore Billets can be tough to obtain, but not impossible. Fighting weekly bosses will have a chance to randomly drop weapon billets, so you should be able to snag a claymore billet eventually. Despite the scarcity of claymore billets, forgeable weapons are the easiest to fully refine. 

It may take some time, but with patience, you’ll get all the materials you’ll need. 

To fully ascend the Prototype Archaic, you will need:

• 150k Mora
• 3 Grain of Aerosiderite (2-star weapon material)
• 9 Piece of Aerosiderite (3-star weapon material)
• 9 Bit of Aerosiderite (4-star weapon material)
• 4 Chunk of Aerosiderite (5-star weapon material)
• 15 Fragile Bone Shard (2-star enemy drop)
• 18 Sturdy Bone Shard (3-star enemy drop)
• 27 Fossilized Bone Shard (4-star enemy drop)
• 10 Damaged Mask (1-star enemy drop)
• 15 Stained Mask (2-star enemy drop)
• 18 Ominous Mask (3-star enemy drop)

Best Chongyun Builds: Sub-DPS

For players looking to deal some damage to opponents with their Chongyun builds, sub-DPS is the way to go. He’ll be on field more often than in a support build while still increasing the ATK and DMG of his party members. 

To effectively use a sub-DPS build, Chongyun should be using his Elemental Skill a lot and balancing his buffing abilities with Cryo DMG output. With the right weapon and artifact set, Chongyun’s otherwise long Elemental Skill cooldown will be shortened, allowing him to utilize his strongest attack more often.  

Weapons

You can’t go wrong picking any of the weapons we went over earlier for sub-DPS Chongyun builds. Wolf’s Gravestone is still the best option, since it helps increase both his ATK% and his party members’ ATK%. That makes it ideal for sub-DPS characters.

The Sacrificial Greatsword is also a very viable option, since it allows you to quickly use Chongyun’s Elemental Skill without waiting for the long cooldown. It will also increase damage by activating Chongyun’s Passive Talents more quickly, too. Since it’s available via all weapon banners, it’s also easy to refine, which only makes it a better weapon choice.

For players who haven’t yet saved up enough primos to wish on banners, our third choice for a sub-DPS Chongyun build is the Prototype Archaic. It helps compensate for Chongyun’s low Elemental Burst damage by increasing his Normal Attack DMG, and the AOE is a good way to quickly gain control of enemy mobs.

Artifacts

When looking for artifact sets to help your Chongyun build, the first to consider is the four-piece Emblem of Severed Fate artifact set. The two-piece effect increases Energy Recharge by 20%, and the four-piece effect increases Elemental Burst DMG by 25% of Energy Recharge (up to a 75% increase).

The Emblem of Severed Fate artifact set offsets Chongyun’s naturally lower Elemental Burst DMG by directly increasing it while also making it easier to recoup energy and pop off his Elemental Burst whenever he enters the field. 

The 5-star Blizzard Strayer artifact set can also be used, but it’s more helpful for characters who will be triggering Elemental Reactions frequently, which Chongyun does not.

For players looking for a 4-star alternative artifact set, The Gambler focuses on increasing Elemental Skill DMG by 20% at the two-piece level, and can end Chongyun’s Elemental Skill cooldown when an enemy is defeated once every 15 seconds at the four-piece level. We highly suggest this set for players who aren’t using the Sacrificial Greatsword weapon so they can still benefit from shortened Elemental Skill cooldowns. 

No matter which artifact set you decide on, each artifact itself has primary stats and substats that are very important too. The primary stats for the Flower of Life and Plume of Death are locked — always being HP and ATK respectively — but the other three artifact slots have multiple options.

In general, you will want artifacts with the following primary stats:

• Sands of Eon: Energy Recharge
• Goblet of Eonothem: Cryo DMG Bonus
• Circlet of Logos: CRIT Rate or DMG

While these stats are more helpful for the Emblem of Severed Fate artifact set, they still work well with the Blizzard Strayer or The Gambler artifact sets, too. Having artifact sets with ATK%, Energy Recharge, and CRIT Rate/DMG substats is also a good idea too.

Team Recommendation

There is some flexibility in Chongyun’s team, but keep in mind that his talents directly benefit Sword, Polearm, and Claymore characters. That means you’ll be missing out on his party buffs if you use Catalyst or Bow characters!

Characters like Bennett and Xiangling pair well with Chongyun while also buffing each other and increasing the overall DMG output of the entire party. There’s also a lot of potential for triggering Melt reactions, which can increase DMG even more.

Best Chongyun Builds: Support

Chongyun’s support build will focus primarily on his Elemental Burst and Elemental Skill. He will usually be on the field just long enough to use both talents before being switched out for another party member who will be able to take advantage of his party buffs. 

Unlike sub-DPS builds, this build won’t do as much damage, but will make up for it by increasing the damage dealt by your other characters when they are on the field. 

Weapons

Support Chongyun builds have a more limited weapon choice since the main role of a Support character isn’t to directly deal damage. That means the best choices for Support weapons are the Wolf’s Gravestone and the Sacrificial Greatsword. 

While the Wolf’s Gravestone directly buffs party members, the Sacrificial Greatsword allows Chongyun’s Elemental Skill to do so more frequently by ending his Elemental Skill cooldown more quickly. The quickened Skill cooldown also means more potential for Elemental Reactions from party members. 

We don’t really recommend the Prototype Archaic claymore for Support builds, since it doesn’t do anything to help Support the rest of the party. The increased damage is nice, but it is more suited for sub-DPS builds.

Artifacts

Finding the right artifact set for this Chongyun build can be tricky. We recommend the 5-star Noblesse Oblige artifact set first and foremost. Its two-piece effect increases Elemental Burst DMG by 20%, which is nice. The main reason we recommend it is for the four-piece effect, which increases all party members’ ATK by 20% for 12 seconds after using an Elemental Burst.

The increased ATK is great for increasing the DMG done by your main DPS character indirectly while still giving Chongyun’s Elemental Burst a nice boost.

If you’re looking for a 4-star artifact set alternative, we recommend The Exile. Rather than increasing Elemental Burst DMG, the two-piece effect increases Energy Recharge by 20%. The four-piece effect then generates 2 Energy for all party members every two seconds for 6 seconds. This four-piece effect also benefits the rest of your party and can help DPS characters with high energy Elemental Burst costs to recoup their Energy more quickly.

Since most of Chongyun’s Support ability will be in setting off his Elemental Skill and Elemental Burst, the artifact stats you want should reflect that.

In general, you will want artifacts with the following primary stats:

• Sands of Eon: Energy Recharge
• Goblet of Eonothem: Cryo DMG Bonus
• Circlet of Logos: CRIT DMG

Since Chongyun’s talents don’t scale with a particular stat, the best substats to look for are Energy Recharge and ATK%. Both of those will help increase his Elemental Burst frequency/ DMG.

Team Recommendation

Support Chongyun builds can do well in most teams, as long as they are made up of Sword, Claymore, and/or Polearm characters. We again recommend Bennett and Xiangling with whatever your main DPS character is.  

Join the High Ground

That’s it for our recommendations for Chongyun builds in Genshin Impact! Do you think he works best as a sub-DPS or support? If you have any thoughts on that or anything else about our build suggestions, be sure to let us know in the comments, and check out our other recommended builds below! Also, make sure to check back frequently, as we update our guides with more tips and all things Genshin Impact.

Happy gaming!

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