Gameplay tips and character summary
We’ve discussed Sangonomiya Kokomi’s weapons, artifacts, and talent priorities in an in-depth manner already. So, is she actually a decent 5-star character to have in your roster?
Here’s the short answer: no. Okay, this bears some explanation, so let’s get to it. First, we already have a Hydro healer in Barbara. She’s only a 4-star character, but she’s essentially a freebie and easy enough to obtain. There are just a few key differences:
- Kokomi has the Bake-Kurage that acts as a totem/turret (it looks like a spectral octopus). It shoots enemies and it heals the active character. It’s somewhat similar to Sayu’s Muji-Muji Daruma.
- The Bake-Kurage pulses seven times before it disappears, making it a powerful healing ability. However, it only restores the HP of the active character.
- Thanks to the “Tamanooya’s Casket” passive, the Bake-Kurage can be refreshed if you cast Kokomi’s burst while the spectral octopus is still up. She can, technically, have near 100% uptime for this ability.
- Kokomi’s elemental skill only applies the “Wet” status effect on her. Barbara’s elemental skill, meanwhile, applies the “Wet” status on the active character who gets healed. This makes Kokomi more viable when facing Cryo-based enemies (the bane of Barbara’s existence since they could freeze your party constantly).
- Barbara’s burst provides instant healing for the entire party.
- Barbara’s and Qiqi’s skills heal the rest of the party if they manage to land attacks. In Kokomi’s case, “healing by attacking” is only possible while her burst is active.
- Barbara’s C6 fully revives any character that dies if she’s in the party. This is a godsend if you’re a bit unlucky in the Spiral Abyss.
Perhaps the kicker is that Kokomi has a passive talent, “Flawless Strategy,” that drops her crit rate like a rock in exchange for a +25% healing bonus. Worse, she has boosts to her normal attacks via talents and/or constellations. However, because your crit rate is already penalized, those boons are going to be useless if she’s not able to pump out a ton of damage with crits. It’s ridiculous for various facets to focus on Kokomi’s offensive capabilities when these capabilities are gimped, to begin with. Simply put, you’ll just stack HP and use her elemental skill to heal. This is followed by her burst before you swap her out for someone else. It might be possible to use her in a Reverse Vape comp (apply Hydro then hit with someone else’s Pyro), but that’s it.
Lastly, among the healers or support characters in Genshin Impact, you already have a couple who fulfill additional roles. Bennett is one such example since he can heal and provide a DPS boost to the party. There’s also Diona who can heal and happily shield your allies. With these in mind, would you really want to spend extra just for a slightly stronger, 5-star Barbara? Probably not.
Genshin Impact is available via its official website. For more information, check out our guides and features hub.
