Updated for Version 3.2
Candace is a 4-star Hydro Polearm character that provides a Hydro Infusion to melee characters and buffs Normal Attacks.
More extensive testing is in progress. Note that the information given is subject to change if and when new discoveries are made.
The full-length Candace guide is available here. Join our Discord to check on and participate in the theorycrafting process.
Table of Contents
Infographic
Playstyles
Off-field Support
Arguably the role Candace is designed for, her off-field role takes full advantage of her kit to provide the on-field character with a Hydro Infusion and an NA buff.
On-field Driver/DPS
Not the best option in terms of team damage, and doesn’t allow her to utilize her C6. On-field Candace typically acts as a driver for more damaging off-field teammates.
This Quick Guide primarily explores Candace’s off-field role. More information on her on-field role will be available in the full Candace Guide when released.
Character Overview
Talent Priority
For an off-field role:
Burst >= Skill >> Normal Attack
Candace’s Normal Attacks can largely be ignored in this playstyle.
Talents
Normal Attack | Gleaming Spear: Guardian Stance
Description
Normal Attack
Performs up to four consecutive spear strikes.
Charged Attack
Consumes a certain amount of Stamina to lunge forward, dealing damage to enemies along the way.
Plunging Attack
Plunges from mid-air to strike the ground below, damaging opponents along the path and dealing AoE DMG upon impact.
The only part of her kit that scales on ATK rather than HP. Her off-field role does not utilize this talent except when weaving Normal Attacks during her brief on-field time to increase Favonius passive proc chance or to trigger off-field DPS characters like Xingqiu or Beidou.
Her N2 is a Heavy/Blunt attack, capable of mining ores and shattering Frozen enemies.
Elemental Skill | Sacred Rite: Heron’s Sanctum
Description
Tap
Rushes forward with her shield, dealing Hydro DMG to opponents in front of her.
Hold
Raises her shield to block incoming attacks from nearby opponents, forming a barrier that absorbs DMG based on her Max HP and absorbs Hydro DMG 250% more effectively. This barrier lasts until the Elemental Skill is unleashed.
After holding for a certain period of time, Candace will finish charging, and when the skill button is released, the skill duration expires, or when the barrier is broken, she will perform a leaping strike that deals Hydro DMG to opponents in front of her.
Has a Tap and a Hold version. Typically, the Tap Skill is preferred as the damage increase provided by the Hold version doesn’t make up for the time taken to charge it.
Her Skill does not count as a shield and cannot proc shield-related effects.
Elemental Burst | Sacred Rite: Wagtail’s Tide
Description
Raising her weapon high, Candace calls upon a divine blessing that deals AoE Hydro DMG based on her Max HP and continuously confers the Prayer of the Crimson Crown on your active character.
Prayer of the Crimson Crown
This effect has the following properties:
- Characters deal increased Elemental DMG with their Normal Attacks.
- Whenever a character takes the field, they will unleash a rippling wave of water that deals Hydro DMG to nearby opponents. There is a limited number of waves that can be triggered in the duration of this skill.
- Sword, Claymore, and Polearm-wielding characters under this effect will obtain a Hydro Infusion.
The most important part of her kit; it is vital that Candace Bursts every rotation.
Ascension 1 Passive | Aegis of Crossed Arrows
Description
If Candace is hit by an attack in the Hold duration of Sacred Rite: Heron’s Sanctum, that skill will finish charging instantly.
Allows Candace to cut down on charging time for her Skill’s Hold version, but is dependent on enemies hitting her at the right time. Additionally, proccing the Hold version may interrupt rotations in some teams due to the longer cooldown pre-C4; in these cases, it is recommended to tap Skill very quickly to avoid triggering this passive.
Ascension 4 Passive | Celestial Dome of Sand
Description
Characters affected by the Prayer of the Crimson Crown caused by Sacred Rite: Wagtail’s Tide will deal 0.5% increased DMG to opponents for every 1,000 points of Candace’s Max HP when they deal Elemental DMG with their Normal Attacks.
A great improvement to Candace’s Normal Attack buffing abilities, providing an overall 30-40% buff to the Normal Attacks of the on-field character.
Constellations
Constellation 1 | Returning Heiress of the Scarlet Sands
The duration of Prayer of the Crimson Crown effect triggered by Sacred Rite: Wagtail’s Tide is increased by 3s.
The longer buff and Infusion duration allows for more flexible rotations. A good early Constellation.
Constellation 2 | Moon-Piercing Brilliance
When Sacred Rite: Heron’s Sanctum hits opponents, Candace’s Max HP will be increased by 20% for 15s.
A solid HP increase for Candace, and in turn, an increase in her buffing capabilities.
Constellation 3 | Hunter’s Supplication
Increases the Level of Sacred Rite: Wagtail’s Tide by 3.
Maximum upgrade level is 15.
A straightforward Burst talent increase.
Constellation 4 | Sentinel Oath
Shortens the Hold CD of Sacred Rite: Heron’s Sanctum to be the same as that of the Tapping CD.
The CD decrease means that accidental perfect counters no longer interfere with rotations.
Constellation 5 | Heterochromatic Gaze
Increases the Level of Sacred Rite: Heron’s Sanctum by 3.
Maximum upgrade level is 15.
A straightforward Skill talent increase.
Constellation 6 | The Overflow
When characters (excluding Candace herself) affected by the Prayer of the Crimson Crown caused by Sacred Rite: Wagtail’s Tide deal Elemental DMG to opponents using Normal Attacks, an attack wave will be unleashed that deals AoE Hydro DMG equal to 15% of Candace’s Max HP.
This effect can trigger once every 2.3s and is considered Elemental Burst DMG.
Provides increased personal damage and Hydro application in teams where she is off-field. A very good Constellation, and makes an HP%/DMG%/CRIT build viable for off-field Candace.
Artifacts
ER Requirements
It is highly recommended to use 2 Skills per Burst, if possible in the rotation, to reduce Candace’s high ER requirements.
Due to Candace’s lack of damage contribution compared to other characters in her teams, funneling particles to Candace is not advisable. Accordingly, the ER recommendations listed below assume that Candace is not catching her own particles. Her ER requirements are lower if she catches her own particles.
| ER Requirement | Solo Hydro | Double Hydro | Triple Hydro |
| 1 Skill | 280 – 300% | 240 – 270% | 200 – 220% |
| 2 Skill | 250 – 280% | 200 – 220% | 170 – 185% |
Each Favonius proc will further reduce her ER requirement by approximately 20-30%.
These numbers are approximate; your mileage may vary. For a more accurate estimate of your requirements based on your team and gear, use Zakharov’s Energy Recharge Calculator.
Artifact Stats
 Sands |  Goblet |  Circlet |
| ER% or HP% | HP% or Hydro DMG% | HP% or CRIT Rate/DMG% |
Substats
ER% (until ER requirement) > CR = CD > HP% > ER
An ER% Sands should be used if necessary to meet ER requirements.
Pre-C6, the choice between HP% vs. DMG%+CRIT stats on Candace depends on the on-field attacker: HP% may be more valuable for an NA-focused attacker with long field time, whereas other teams may benefit more from bolstering Candace’s personal damage by building her with DMG% and CRIT. However, the overall team DPS difference is minimal between building Candace as a pure HP% support and building her with DMG% and CRIT stats.
At C6, Hydro DMG% and CRIT is always preferred. However, as Candace’s overall team damage contribution remains relatively low even at C6, it may not be worth investing resin into building Candace for personal damage considering that a full HP% set is much easier to farm.
Artifact Sets
 4-piece Emblem of Severed Fate (4EoSF) | BiS for personal damage, with the 2-piece effect helping her ER needs. |
 4-piece Noblesse Oblige | Great for buffing ATK-scaling teammates. |
 Mixed 2-piece combinations (Tenacity of the Millelith / Heart of Depth / Emblem of Severed Fate / Noblesse Oblige) | Mixed 2pc combination sets may be just as good as 4EoSF depending on the quality of their substats. We recommend using Genshin Optimizer to find your best set. |
 4-piece Instructor / 4-piece The Exile | 4pc Instructor can be used to provide an EM buff in reaction teams that benefit strongly from EM, such as Vaporize, Bloom, Hyperbloom and Burgeon teams. 4pc Exile can be used in teams that appreciate its Energy generation. 4-star sets do lead to less personal damage due to lower stat volume, but this may not be a big issue given Candace’s typically low team damage share. |
 4-piece Deepwood Memories (4DM) | Candace can hold 4DM in Dendro reaction teams when the Dendro teammate would prefer to run another set, such as Nahida with Gilded Dreams in a Nilou Bloom team. |
Weapons
Candace does not need 5-star weapons or highly contested weapons like “The Catch”; other units may make better use of these weapons.
 Favonius Lance | Great choice for the team as a whole; lowers ER needs for both Candace and her party members. Building some CRIT Rate% is necessary to trigger its passive. |
 Staff of Homa / Staff of the Scarlet Sands / Primordial Jade-Winged Spear | Great for Candace’s personal damage. |
 Engulfing Lightning / Skyward Spine | ER% substat makes meeting requirements easier. |
 Deathmatch | 4-star option for Candace’s personal damage; paying for refinements is not recommended. |
 “The Catch” | F2P option, great for Burst damage and helps with ER requirements. |
 Prototype Starglitter | F2P craftable with an ER% main stat. Not worth refining in an off-field playstyle. |
 Black Tassel R5 | Cheap F2P option; HP% stat increases the NA DMG% Bonus she provides. However, it doesn’t help with her high ER requirements. |
Teams
Team-Building
- Candace’s teams usually center around buffing an on-field NA attacker or opening up new team compositions by providing a Hydro Infusion to melee characters.
- Characters that have access to Elemental Infusion largely do not benefit from Candace as a teammate. Exceptions are listed below.
Off-Field Support
Candace provides a Normal Attack buff and Hydro infusion in these teams.
Notable Teammates
 Xingqiu | Improves Xingqiu’s damage in an on-field role by allowing him to take advantage of on-field buffs like Bennett’s Burst, as Xingqiu’s infused Normal Attacks will benefit from his usual Hydro DMG% Goblet and his C2 Hydro RES Shred. |
 Bennett | Candace’s infusion allows Bennett to Vaporize his low cooldown Skill, and Bennett being on-field also helps him better battery Pyro teammates like Xiangling. Candace’s Hydro Infusion overrides Bennett’s C6. |
 Xiangling | Candace can help Xiangling Vaporize her Pyronado by providing Xiangling or a teammate with Hydro Infusion and Normal Attack buff. |
  Ayato / Kokomi | Ayato and Kokomi benefit from Candace’s NA damage buff during their infused attack windows, from Hydro Resonance and from the lowered ER requirements of running with a second Hydro like Candace. |
 Zhongli | Due to his fast NAs applying Hydro faster and him being able to compress the driver, buffer and shielder roles in one slot, on-field DPS Zhongli is a good candidate for making use of Candace’s infusion. If optimizing for damage, he would prefer to be built with a Hydro DMG% Goblet. He also provides RES Shred and his kit takes advantage of Hydro Resonance in teams with a second Hydro. |
 Razor | Candace can provide a Hydro Infusion for Hyperbloom Razor teams. |
Example Teams
This is not a comprehensive list of teams, and the inclusion of a certain team or lack thereof does not necessarily indicate the power level of the team in question. This list is not ranked.
Reverse Vaporize
Candace — Bennett — Xiangling — Xingqiu
Xingqiu can be played on-field to take advantage of Bennett’s Burst to buff both Xingqiu’s infused Hydro attacks and Xingqiu’s Burst hits.
Bloom
Candace — Dendro MC — Nilou — Kokomi
Kokomi on-field can get the benefit of Candace’s NA buff, while Dendro Traveler gets full Bloom ownership and can be built with full EM (as long as they have sufficient ER to Burst every rotation).
Burgeon
Candace — Ayato — Dendro MC — Thoma
In this team, Ayato takes advantage of both Candace’s NA buffs and the Hydro particles she provides.
Hyperbloom
Candace — Nahida — Beidou — Shinobu
Either Candace or Shinobu can be on-field here. Shinobu will trigger the majority of Hyperblooms, as Beidou’s Burst does not target Dendro Cores.
Mono Hydro
Candace — Yelan — Xingqiu — Kazuha
Kazuha provides an Elemental DMG% buff, Viridescent Venerer RES Shred, and grouping. Xingqiu can drive to take advantage of Candace’s infusion and NA DMG buff and Yelan’s A4 buff on his NAs and Burst.
Candace — Zhongli — Xingqiu — Yelan
On-field Zhongli can drive Xingqiu and Yelan with Candace’s infusion on his NAs, while providing a shield, RES Shred and potentially 4pc Archaic Petra Hydro buffs to the team.
Credits
juko#9385, Athena#2444, mina#4448, idkanonymized#4166, Nociii#0111, konodiada#4956, Seima#4597, uhinf1999
(ty for putting up with my bs Seima)