Best Light Cones for Each Path and Character in Honkai Star Rail

Light Cones are equipable items in Honkai: Star Rail, providing characters with bonus stats and effects. Certain Light Cones can increase a character’s damage or support potential by an incredible amount, and choosing the right one is essential for maximizing characters in endgame content.

With only one Light Cone slot per character and a whole heap of choices, this guide is here to help you make the correct decision with a list of the best Light Cones for each Path and every Character in Honkai: Star Rail — including alternate options for new players and those of us having very little luck with the current banners.

• Best Destruction Light Cones
• Best The Hunt Light Cones
• Best Erudition Light Cones
• Best Harmony Light Cones
• Best Nihility Light Cones
• Best Preservation Light Cones
• Best Abundance Light Cones

Best Destruction Light Cones in Honkai Star Rail

As the name suggests, Destruction characters are all about dishing out heavy damage. On the Fall of an Aeon is generally the best Destruction Light Cone, increasing the user’s Attack whenever they strike an enemy, and Damage on Weakness Breaks.

Something Irreplaceable is also a fantastic choice and a personal favorite of mine, providing a permanent flat increase of 24% – 40% to Attack and a small heal when being hit or defeating an enemy.

Best Light Cones for Trailblazer (Physical)

• On the Fall of an Aeon
• Something Irreplaceable
• The Moles Welcome You
• Nowhere to Run

Best Light Cones for Arlan

• On The Fall of an Aeon
• A Secret Vow
• The Moles Welcome You
• Nowhere to Run

Best Light Cones for Clara

• Something Irreplaceable
• On the Fall of an Aeon
• The Moles Welcome You
• Nowhere to Run

Best Light Cones for Hook

• On The Fall of an Aeon
• Something Irreplaceable
• Woof! Walk Time!
• The Moles Welcome You

Best Light Cones for Xueyi

• On the Fall of an Aeon
• The Mole Welcomes You
• Under the Blue Sky
• A Secret Vow

Best Light Cones for Blade

• On the Fall of an Aeon
• Nowhere to Run
• A Secret Vow
• Shattered Home

Best Light Cones for Dan Heng: Imbitor Lunae

• On the Fall of an Aeon
• Only Silence Remains
• Return to Darkness
• Darting Arrow

Best Light Cones for Jingliu

• On the Fall of an Aeon
• The Unreachable Side
• Something Irreplaceable
• The Moles Welcome You

Best The Hunt Light Cones in Honkai Star Rail

I will stand by the testament that The Hunt characters are the best in Honkai: Star Rail, mainly due to my love for the Light Cones available, which makes this particular path shine. Characters that follow the path of The Hunt excel in single-target damage, often relying on Critical hits. In The Night is my go-to as it increases your character’s Critical Rate by 18% – 30% and boosts the damage of their Attack, Skill, and Critical damage of their Ultimate.

Sleep Like the Dead is a stellar option for characters relying heavily on Crit. It is another favorite of mine as it gives the character a flat 30% – 50% increase in Critical damage and their Crit rate when an attack fails to make a Critical hit. This works especially well with Dr. Ratio!

Related: Best Characters in Honkai Star Rail – HSR Tier List

Best Light Cones for Dan Heng

• In The Night
• Cruising in the Stellar Sea
• Only Silence Remains
• Swordplay

Best Light Cones for Sushang

• In The Night
• Sleep Like the Dead
• Return to Darkness
• Swordplay

Best Light Cones for Seele

• In The Night
• Cruising in the Stellar Sea
• Return to Darkness
• Only Silence Remains

Best Light Cones for Yanqing

• Sleep Like the Dead
• Cruising in the Stellar Sea
• Swordplay
• Only Silence Remains

Best Light Cones for Dr. Ratio

• Baptism of Pure Thought
• In the Night
• Sleep Like the Dead
• Worrisome, Blissful

Best Light Cones for Topaz

• In the Night
• Cruising in the Stellar Sea
• Sleep Like the Dead
• Swordplay

Best Erudition Light Cones in Honkai Star Rail

Erudition characters are perfect for simultaneously dealing damage to multiple enemies — commonly known as AoE (Area of Effect) damage across the gaming sphere. Night on the Milky Way and Before Dawn are your best choices for Erudition units, though which you choose depends on your specific character.

Night on the Milky Way increases the character’s Attack based on how many enemies you’re facing and boosts Damage on Weakness Breaks. This works well with characters like Serval and Himeko.

Before Dawn has a flat Critical, Skill, and Ultimate damage increase. Following a Skill or Ultimate being used, the character will gain Somnus Corpus, which provides a massive damage boost when a follow-up attack is triggered.

Best Light Cones for Argentini

• Night on the Milky Way
• An Instant Before a Gaze
• Make the World Clamor
• Before Dawn

Best Light Cones for Himeko

• Night on the Milky Way
• Before Dawn
• The Birth of the Self
• Today is Another Peaceful Day

Best Light Cones for Serval

• Night on the Milky Way
• Make the World Clamor
• The Seriousness of Breakfast
• Today is Another Peaceful Day

Best Light Cones for Qingque

• Night on the Milky Way
• Make the World Clamor
• The Seriousness of Breakfast
• Today is Another Peaceful Day

Best Light Cones for Herta

• Before Dawn
• Night on the Milky Way
• Today is Another Peaceful Day
• The Birth of the Self

Best Light Cones for Jing Yuan

• Before Dawn
• Night on the Milky Way
• Make the World Clamor
• The Birth of the Self

Best Harmony Light Cones

Harmony characters are the hypemen and women of Honkai: Star Rail, strengthening their allies by buffing them and removing debuffs inflicted by enemies.

But the Battle Isn’t Over is the best Light Cone for all Harmony characters and has helped me the most in battle, as it increases their Regeneration rate and generates a Skill Point when an Ultimate is used on an ally. It also raises an ally’s damage by a considerable amount every time your character uses their skill, which is generally every turn for an Abundance character.

Best Light Cones for Bronya

• But the Battle Isn’t Over
• Dance! Dance! Dance!
• Carve the Moon, Weave the Clouds
• Past and Future

Best Light Cones for Tingyun

• But the Battle Isn’t Over
• Carve the Moon, Weave the Clouds
• Past and Future
• Memories of the Past

Best Light Cones for Asta

• But the Battle Isn’t Over
• Carve the Moon, Weave the Clouds
• Memories of the Past
• Meditation

Best Light Cones for Hanya

• But the Battle Isn’t Over
• Dance! Dance! Dance!
• Memories of the Past
• Past and Future

Best Light Cones for Yukong

• But the Battle Isn’t Over
• Dance! Dance! Dance!
• Past and Future
• Carve the Moon, Weave the Clouds

Best Nihility Light Cones in Honkai Star Rail

Nihility characters are the opposite of those walking the path of Harmony, instead focusing on debuffing and weakening enemies. In the Name of the World is perfect for every Nihility unit, providing a 24% – 40% increase to the user’s damage against debuffed targets and increasing their Effect Hit Rate and Attack when using a Skill.

Best Light Cones for Welt

• In the Name of the World
• Eyes of the Prey
• Resolution Shines As Pearls of Sweat
• Void

Best Light Cones for Sampo

• In the Name of the World
• Eyes of the Prety
• Fermata
• Good Night and Sleep Well

Best light Cones for Pela

• In the Name of the World
• Eyes of the Prety
• Resolution Shines As Pearls of Sweat
• Good Night and Sleep Well

Best Light Cones for Gunaifen

• In the Name of the World
• Patience is all You Need
• Solitary Healing
• Good Night and Sleep Well

Best Light Cones for Kafka

• In the Name of the World
• Patience is all You Need
• Solitary Healing
• Incessant Rain

Best Light Cones for Luka

• In the Name of the World
• Patience is All You Need
• Good Night and Sleep Well
• Eyes of the Prey

Best Light Cones for Silver Wolf

• In the Name of the World
• Incessant Rain
• Resolution Shines as Pearls of Sweat
• Void

Best Preservation Light Cones in Honkai Star Rail

Preservation characters are the equivalent of tanks in Honkai Star Rail, shielding your team and often taking the brunt of attacks. This means you’ll need a lot of Defense, and Moment of Victory provides more than enough.

With Moment of Victory equipped, your character gains a permanent 24% – 40% increase to their Defense and Effect Hit Rate. It also increases the chance of being hit by enemies and increases Defense even further when attacked. “Get hit, get paid” is what I like to say.

Best Light Cones for March 7th

• Moment of Victory
• Day One of My New Life
• This Is Me!
• Amber

Best Light Cones for Trailblazer (Fire)

• Moment of Victory
• Landau’s Choice
• Day One of My New Life
• This Is Me!

Best Light Cones for Gepard

• Moment of Victory
• Texture of Memories
• Landau’s Choice
• Day One of My New Life

Best Light Cones for Fu Xuan

• Moment of Victory
• Texture of Memories
• We Are Wildlife
• She Already Shut Her Eyes

Best Abundance Light Cones in Honkai Star Rail

Abundance characters are your team’s primary healers, with the core goal of keeping your team’s health constantly topped up at the cost of typically outputting little to no damage.

Time Waits For No One is by far the best Light Cone for all Abundance characters. Equipping it will increase your character’s outgoing healing by 12% – 20% and maximum HP by 18% – 30%.

While this alone would make it the go-to choice for an Abundance character, it also passively deals damage based on the healing value of your character when an ally attacks an enemy once per turn — minor extra damage as a treat.

Best Light Cones for Bailu

• Time Waits For No One
• Post-Op Conversation
• Shared Feeling
• Quid Pro Quo

Best Light Cones for Natasha

• Time Waits For No One
• Post-Op Conversation
• Warmth Shortens Cold Nights
• Shared Feeling

Best Light Cones for Luocha

• Time Waits for No One
• Echoes of the Coffin
• Perfect Timing
• Shared Feeling

Best Light Cones for Lynx

• Time Waits for No One
• Post-Op Conversation
• Night of the Fright
• Hey, Over Here

What is the Best 5-Star Light Cone in Honkai Star Rail?

The best 5-Star Light Cones in Honkai Star Rail are In the Night and Before Dawn. As previously mentioned in this guide, these two Light Cones significantly increase the potential of the characters who have them equipped. If you had to pick one of these Light Cones, I recommend picking Before Dawn for the Erudition Path. The significant boost of 36% to CRIT damage cannot be overlooked. This is, of course, only if you prefer to have a character of the Erudition Path in your party.

This guide was written from my experience playing Version 1.0.5 of Honkai: Star Rail on PC.