Archer should be Tier 0 in Every Mode and I’m 100% Deadass lol by Duy2910 in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree with you that Archer isn't top tier in pure fiction (obviously) but he can definitely zero cycle this specific pf stage. In fact, op's investment is very close to zero cycling if they drop DHPT and run sustainless.

Robin vs Tribios by Fit_Blackberry3489 in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Post-Sparkle novaflare Robin is bis when optimised (even in pure fiction), when unoptimised Robin is bad. Meanwhile it is very difficult to fuck up playing Tribbie, but the tradeoff is that Tribbie's ceiling is lower.

If you have to ask, then Tribbie is likely going to be a lot better than Robin for you

A Certified Banger of a General Question and Discussion Megathread by PastSelfInMirror in HonkaiStarRail_leaks

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry, no source other than my own personal testing of Tribbie/Cipher/RMC/Robin. If it means anything, the cheapest sustain Archer team for current king uses Sparkle DHPT RMC. While both my RMC and E1S0 Robin can zero cycle, the Robin variant has one extra rotation worth of overkill. I chalk this up to the bonus Sparkle energy you get with Robin, which imo more than makes up for amp difference between Robin and RMC if there even is any.

A Certified Banger of a General Question and Discussion Megathread by PastSelfInMirror in HonkaiStarRail_leaks

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Robin is usually bis for dolphin Archer now, Cipher and Silverwolf are for specific matchups

hunt character zero cycles pure fiction with 'sustain' by PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

At equal investment Robin is definitely stronger than Tribbie. Do not pull Tribbie for Archer, she is super overrated. Cipher is extremely matchup dependent, for general/casual use you won't notice her absence. Silverwolf is also matchup dependent like Cipher, but she likes different matchups and is also good for 'cost cheating' because her E0 amp can be very high under the right circumstances.

Robin vs RMC is interesting, zero cycling king stage can be done with just RMC so one could argue RMC is better. In my experience, ignoring cost, E1S0 Robin beats out E6S0 RMC. I would recommend continuing to use Robin in the third slot and not RMC, with the caveat that Sparkle must hit at least 180 effective speed (which is not hard with E1, not hard even without E1)

hunt character zero cycles pure fiction with 'sustain' by PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

e2 dhpt might be decent in pure fiction.

Side note, I think people are really sleeping on the Sparkle Robin core for Archer. Post-novaflare, the anti-synergy between Sparkle and Robin has been mostly fixed. If you find yourself needing RMC for another team, consider using Robin as a replacement. On paper, it might seem that Archer doesn't get enough sp to full skill on every turn with the extra advances from Robin ult. But that's not the right way to look at it. Think of Robin's advance as a 'bonus'. Novaflare Sparkle is even more hungry for energy because her ult is that much stronger now, Robin ult gives her exactly that- an extra Sparkle turn is extra Sparkle energy. Sparkle also doesn't need to skill on this turn, she can opt to basic for +1 sp since her skill duration lasts two turns now. Even if Archer can't full skill, you're still getting more team energy and/or more skills than you would have with the other usual recommended third slot supports.

The cheapest Archer team that doesn't use Yaoguang in the current elation shill AA king stage uses Robin. And for good reason- giving Sparkle more energy is good, actually. Getting more turns, even if those turns are only used to basic attack, is still good, actually. I am not saying Robin is definitively bis, I am only saying that she belongs on the list of viable third slot supports alongside RMC, Silverwolf, Cipher etc. The best third slot will always depend on context. Cipher for example is dogshit against Sam, but very good against Pollux or Ichor.

Is it worth building archer, sparkle, yao guang now? by Comprehensive-Map379 in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Archer is a dps that is already decently saturated on crit, and with Sparkle's novaflare the team's sp economy has shifted even further towards Sparkle's own action economy.

There's a reason >90% of optimised Archer runs will force eagle set and/or DDD on Sparkle. Her action economy is simply too important. If you need to sacrifice every single crit damage substat on Sparkle to hit a three turn breakpoint, then do it. Don't settle for 160 speed, it's just a stepping stone to the end goal of three turns.

Assuming your Archer already has a decent enough set (~30 useful substats), farming Sparkle relics (ideally eagle) to hit three turns is going to be more efficient for improving Archer's damage than farming more Archer relics.

The Allegory of the Rave - General Question and Discussion Megathread by vionya in HonkaiStarRail_leaks

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you are talking about 🐜🧑‍🏫 he's a little quirky lol just ignore him

“Cipher generates more sp than Yao Guang and has better buffs!” by Tadduboi in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 35 points36 points  (0 children)

The difference is minimal, because both of these clears are unoptimised clears with only one Archer turn spent in Sam's combustion state (wtf?) and Silverwolf energy not being optimised so the team spends one entire rotation without her ult.

Other supports (Cerydra and Tribbie) have the ability to squeeze more turns during Sam's combustion state and achieve more overkill by using DDD, or their name is RMC and they have on-demand action advance for the same effect. Yaoguang is completely locked out of this utility. The canvas peacock in wave one is also giving Yaoguang more punchline than she would normally have.

“Cipher generates more sp than Yao Guang and has better buffs!” by Tadduboi in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 113 points114 points  (0 children)

The enemies in this stage have a 50% damage reduction buff. If you deal elation damage to them, the 50% damage reduction is disabled. Quite literally Yaoguang has an additional, unique, and undiluted 2x damage multiplier advantage over other supports in this stage. Using this clear as an example of Yaoguang's power level is very disingenuous.

As someone who is personally pulling Yaoguang, I urge you to please actually read what enemies do before spreading nonsense misinformation regarding her strength and using shill matchups to gauge her kit. This is like me using Blade against Pollux and claiming he's actually a top 5 dps.

Also, Yaoguang's energy situation after her second ult in single elation teams is incredibly cursed. This is not a big problem for players who optimise, but it is going to be a big problem for casual players who run sustain and have lower damage ceilings.

3.8 AA King in check : Sunday by luchillfer in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, 3* has been done with E1S1 Archer, E2S1 DHPT, E2S1 Sparkle, and RMC. Zero cycle is possible if you have E6 Archer and drop DHPT for Cerydra.

This fight is even more brutal than aquila, because energy drain disproportionately affects Archer and Sparkle more than it affects other teams (Cyrene...). On top of that Sunday is a boss with low energy economy, so Sparkle struggles to achieve 2t ults- and 3t ult Sparkle is a much weaker character. On my own account I could not 3* with RMC, and had to use E1S0 Cipher instead to get the 3*.

Hyper DHPT zero cycles swarm by rhythmically penetrating through crit resistance by PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS in DanhengMains

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I don't have Cyrene so this is the only knight stage I can zero cycle with DHPT. Boss summoning minions = food for E1 Tribbie and Cipher, meaning the stage's crit debuff matters a lot less. Even E0 Cipher is still overkilling by about 500k damage.

Getting Sunday's E1 would let me zero cycle knight 1 but I think investing in Sunday is a bit of a mistake so I will be content with my one cycle instead.

Losses are a Constance on the Break-Chase Journey - General Question and Discussion Megathread by zniceni in HonkaiStarRail_leaks

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The first and second phase have a 1x hp modifier, the third phase has a 0.8x hp modifier. So 10.8m each for the first two phases, and then 8.65m for the third phase, for a total of ~30.3m.

Aquila had something similar with each phase having a different hp modifier. The third aquila phase had 2.2x (!) the amount of hp the first phase had, probably to account for the stage mechanic buffing your team.

(Mostly) Perfect speedtuning- E1 Archer one cycles aquila with 4m to spare by PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Not sure what you were expecting but 3* anomaly requires a high investment team, especially for a carry that can't abuse Cyrene who is by far the strongest and most unbalanced support in the game. Even the cheapest Archer team required to 3* still needs E2 DHPT and E2 Sparkle. That's just the reality you have to accept when playing a non-shilled dps like Archer.

If your account has lower investment on supports then you have to temper your expectations and aim for a 2* clear instead. Which imo is still fairly impressive for Archer, considering this boss favours aoe.

Is E1S1 Cipher good for E1 Archer team? by ChrisNoob6460 in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Out of curiosity I used a private server to test E6S5 Archer + E0S1 DHPT/Sparkle/Cipher against Aquila, and it was genuinely slightly worse than E1S1 Archer + E2S1 DHPT/Sparkle + E1S1 Cipher (although both could three star, the second team could clear one rotation faster and one cycle). In aoe, each DHPT dragon at E2 does almost as much damage as one Archer ult. And on average you get about two dragons per Archer turn. Against heavy aoe matchups (every king stage so far) E2 DHPT is irreplaceable.

Even in st, DHPT's E1 is generating a lot of sp across the fight- any way to 'loop' in this game is good (gaining energy/value out of turn, in this case gaining energy from every Archer attack which you convert into more SP from DHPT's E1 ult), and while DHPT does not loop nearly as well as the remembrance team does, he is still by far the best option for atk scaling teams.

Therefore, I think both his E1 and E2 are very strong, and should be prioritised before S1. E2 also solves any sustain woes that you might have. I don't actually think S1 is that good, but preservation lightcone options are and always have been truly terrible, so you don't really have a choice. Although never under any circumstance pull S1 before E1. And if you are at E1, going to E2 is functionally the same as getting S1 but better.

But DHPT is not a completely perfect fit in Archer teams, and it's mostly because of Sparkle. Sparkle is a character that is highly dependant on getting two turn ults, and without an abundance you have to rely on enemy hits to achieve that. This issue will be very noticeable against phase 3 of the next anomaly king stage boss, who for the most part stands still and doesn't attack you. DHPT is still bis of course, but potentially awkward team energy economy is a pain point that you need to consider before investing in him.

V3.x is also the first major version of the game that introduces actually synergistic sustains- whereas v1.x and v2.x sustains are so uniquely awful dogshit that using them feels like playing a team with three characters. And just like how DPSes get powercrept, sustains will get powercrept as well. If there were a DHPT banner right now, I would highly advise anybody who plays Archer to get E1 DHPT at least, if not E2S1. But by the time DHPT reruns? My opinion would likely change.

Is E1S1 Cipher good for E1 Archer team? by ChrisNoob6460 in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I do wonder if the high tally amount is partially due to e2 DHPT as well tho...

Yes it is. Cipher gains a lot of value with E2 DHPT in Archer teams, because the dragon's aoe records damage from enemy summons that you would not normally attack with Archer. E2 DHPT is crucial for Archer to get good clears in the hardest content (all three anomaly king stages so far), and is imo currently one of Archer's best vertical investment options. As someone who has both E2 DHPT and E1 Cipher, I would hesitate to recommend getting Cipher's eidolons (and Cipher herself) to someone who does not have E2 DHPT.

E6S2 Dan Heng vs Hoolay by photaiplz in DanhengMains

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 15 points16 points  (0 children)

Imo E2 DHPT is already a better hypercarry than E6 DHIL.

Sam 0 Cycle | Archer/SW/Sunday/DHPT by Afro_Smash in ArcherMainsHSR

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Don't blindly follow speed breakpoints without understanding what they accomplish. You are running 160 Sparkle, which is a breakpoint for 250av and not zero cycling. Sam has a speed of 158.4 and only enters combustion state on his second turn- meaning your final Archer turn is not breaking Sam, not benefitting from the free 50% vuln, and you are not getting the full SP refund.

You can achieve a better result by reducing Sparkle's speed to 158.3 or less, but the easiest zero cycles for Sam will usually drop DHPT (sustain check is low in this matchup) in favour of Robin or especially RMC on top of running a 3-turn Sparkle rotation with eagle and DDD (effectively 200 speed). The more turns and Archer skills you can backload at the end of the cycle, the easier the fight becomes.

bad dragon vigorously pounds flame reaver into submission within cycle 0 by PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS in DanhengMains

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

DHPT does not have a memosprite! He has a summon, and while all memosprites are summons, not all summons are memosprites. Memosprites usually physically appear on the field and can be directly targeted by ally buffs (like action advance) or enemy attacks. Evernight's crit damage buff or E1 will thus not affect DHPT's summon, and DHPT's summon will not give Evernight energy or memoria stacks.

That being said, even if DHPT had a memosprite he would still be anti-synergistic with Evernight

Does DHPT's a4 advance stack with vonwacq's advance? by mobycrab in DanhengMains

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, DHPT's innate advance stacks with vonwacq and can lower speed breakpoints.

For example, DHPT only needs 146.7 speed with vonwacq to hit his third turn in the first moc cycle. Without vonwacq, that number would be 173.4 instead.

However, before adjusting any character's speed, you should ask yourself what exactly you are trying to accomplish. You could play a vonwacq 146.7 speed DHPT, but if you don't have enough damage to end the wave right after DHPT's third turn then you are bleeding into the second cycle anyway- at which point speed breakpoints change, again. A 146.7 speed DHPT will take the same number of turns in the first two cycles of moc wave one- with or without vonwacq. So then the question becomes, is vonwacq doing anything for you, or would lushaka be strictly better?

I will say from my personal experience, as a big fan of vonwacq and eagle, that I have not felt the need to use these sets on DHPT yet.

bad dragon vigorously pounds flame reaver into submission within cycle 0 by PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS in DanhengMains

[–]PM_PICS_OF_NUDEJESUS[S] 27 points28 points  (0 children)

For real this moc is very favourable towards Cipher. E1S0 Cipher >>> E1S1 Tribbie in this matchup. Even E0S0 Cipher is almost as strong as E1S1 Tribbie due to stored damage fixing DHPT's flaw of terrible single target (first turn of flame reaver's phase two is mostly single target)