Updated for Version 4.4

Gaming is a 4-star Pyro Claymore character in Genshin Impact who deals strong damage via enhanced Plunging Attacks. Learn about Gaming’s best builds, best weapons, best artifacts, and best teams in this quick guide.

Note that the information given may change if new discoveries are made. More extensive testing is in progress.

Join our Discord to participate in the theorycrafting process.

Infographic

Credits to: kolvii, icedsquid, irokei, haafr, and KQM Staff.

Character Overview

Playstyles

Plunging Attack DPS

Gaming is an on-field Plunging Attack DPS unit who uses his Elemental Skill to perform enhanced Plunging Attacks. Gaming uses his Burst to enter a special state that ends if he leaves the field, so his teammates should set up their off-field abilities beforehand. Gaming’s teammates aim to maximize his damage by providing buffs and enabling Elemental Reactions from off-field (usually Reverse Vaporize). 

Gaming’s special state summons the Suanni Man Chai. Man Chai deals damage to an enemy and returns to Gaming, which resets Gaming’s Skill cooldown as long as he is above 50% Max HP. This allows Gaming to use 4–6 enhanced Plunging Attacks during his Burst state. Note that Man Chai doesn’t return immediately, so Gaming needs to perform some action while Man Chai travels back. See the Combos section for more details.

Gaming’s Elemental Skill cooldown reset, A1 Passive, and A4 Passive require him to stay above 50% Max HP, so a healer is recommended.

Talents

Talent Priority

Skill > Burst ≥ Normal Attack*

Gaming’s enhanced Plunging Attacks constitute the majority of his damage and scale with his Skill’s Talent level. His Burst does not deal a significant amount of damage so it can be prioritized after. His Normal Attack Talent is still used to fill time between the enhanced Plunging Attacks from his Skill.

*Prioritize Gaming’s Normal Attack over his Burst if playing with Xianyun and C6 Bennett. In this circumstance, his Pyro-infused regular Plunging Attacks contribute more damage than his Burst.

Talent Overview

Constellations

Gaming is a perfectly good unit at C0. His first five Constellations provide small damage buffs, but his last Constellation is a larger increase.

Combos

The number of enhanced Plunging Attacks Gaming can perform during his Burst state heavily depends on how quickly Man Chai returns. Depending on how far Man Chai rolls away, Gaming can perform anywhere from 5 to 8 enhanced Plunging Attacks during his field time.

Note that when playing with C6 Bennett in a Melt or Vaporize team, Gaming should dash towards Man Chai instead of performing any Normal Attacks during the downtime between Skills. The additional Pyro application from infused Normal Attacks clears Hydro and Cryo auras, which prevents Gaming from consistently triggering Vape or Melt.

EP Q 4–5[N2 EP]	Use Case: Default Combo This is Gaming’s default combo. Use his Skill before his Burst to prefunnel Pyro Particles, then use 2 Normal Attacks while waiting for Man Chai to return, then use his Skill as it comes off cooldown.
Q 5[N2 EP] EP (EP)	Use Case: Faster But More Difficult A faster combo to perform than above, but also more difficult to pull off. You need to press the Skill button (E) immediately before Man Chai reconnects with Gaming.
EP Q 3[JP EP] N2 EP	Use Case: With Xianyun This combo maximizes Xianyun’s A4 Plunging Attack buff. This combo lacks Normal Attacks, so Gaming needs to use a different combo to trigger Xingqiu’s or Yelan’s Burst.
EP Q 5–7[N1D EP] (Replace N2 with N1D)	Use Case: Sweating for an Extra Plunge or Two You can reduce the time it takes for Man Chai to reconnect with Gaming by dashing in Man Chai’s direction instead of waiting for him to come to Gaming. In optimal scenarios, this allows Gaming to perform additional enhanced Plunging Attacks per rotation. Note that this makes positioning and gameplay in general more difficult, especially with units like Bennett with limited AoE on their buffs.

Artifacts

ER Requirements

Gaming’s C4 reduces his ER requirements via its Energy refund.

	C0-C3	C4-C6
Solo Pyro	180–190%	145–155%
With Bennett	150–160%	125–135%

• Teammate Favonius procs reduce Gaming’s ER requirements by 15–25%.
• ER requirements with Bennett calculated with 2 Bennett Tap Skills and require him to feed the particles from one Tap Skill to Gaming. If Bennett does not funnel particles to Gaming, the ER requirements are about 10% higher.

Use the Energy Recharge Calculator to determine exact requirements for your team and rotation.

Artifact Stats

Sands	Goblet	Circlet
EM, ER, or ATK%	Pyro DMG Bonus	CRIT Rate or CRIT DMG

Stat Priority: ER% (until requirement) > CRIT > EM > ATK%

Gaming’s Burst must be used every rotation, so prioritize meeting his ER requirements.

EM stats are only needed in a Vape or Melt team. EM is mostly useless in Mono Pyro and Chevreuse Overloaded teams.

Artifact Sets

Recommended Sets

4pc Marechaussee Hunter (MH)	4pc Marechaussee Hunter is Gaming’s most recommended artifact set. While he does not benefit from the 2pc bonus, he consistently gains all 3 stacks of the 4pc bonus rather quickly.  Gaming has an effective cap of 64% CRIT Rate with 4pc MH. Weapons with CRIT Rate secondary stats and Gaming’s C6 make it easy to reach this cap, so be careful with your builds.
4pc Crimson Witch of Flames (CW)	4pc Crimson Witch of Flames performs on par with 4pc MH in Vaporize and Melt teams. He can easily reach max stacks on the 4pc effect since he uses his Skill 5 times per rotation. This set avoids the CRIT Rate cap issues of 4pc MH. If you want to use this set, it may be the most efficient use of Resin to farm another domain and get pieces from the Strongbox.

Other Sets

4pc Gilded Dreams	4pc Gilded Dreams is a viable alternative in Vape and Melt teams if you already have a good set. It performs roughly 5% worse than the two 4pc sets above.
2pc Mixed Sets	2pc Set Bonuses: ATK%, EM, Pyro DMG%, ER% Good transitional sets while you farm for one of the sets above. 2pc ATK% + 2pc Pyro DMG% performs on par with 4pc Vermillion Hereafter.
4pc Vermillion Hereafter	4pc Vermillion Hereafter provides a large amount of ATK% that stacks over time. However, Gaming already receives a large amount of ATK buffs from teammates such as Bennett.  This set performs roughly 11% worse than 4pc Crimson Witch of Flames, which is on par with 2pc + 2pc sets. Therefore, it is not worth farming.

Weapons

Serpent Spine	Serpent Spine is Gaming’s general Best-in-Slot weapon, even at R1. An ATK buffer (like Bennett) and a shielder are recommended to run with this weapon. Without a shielder, it loses consistency and falls behind other high-ranking weapons.
5-Star CRIT Claymores	Verdict, Redhorn Stonethresher, Beacon of the Reed Sea These Claymores possess a CRIT secondary stat and high Base ATK, which make them tie for Gaming’s second-best option after R5 Serpent Spine. Their passives are mostly useless on Gaming.
Rainslasher	Rainslasher is a powerful option in Gaming’s Vaporize teams. At R5, it is competitive with 5-star CRIT Claymores. It is not recommended to use this weapon in non-Vaporize teams.
5-Star ATK% Claymores	Wolf’s Gravestone, Song of Broken Pines, The Unforged These 5-star Claymores are good ATK stat sticks. They perform worse than CRIT Claymores due to the ATK buffs common in Gaming’s teams. Wolf’s Gravestone and Song of Broken Pines can also buff the ATK% of Gaming’s teammates. Note that Song of Broken Pines has a Physical DMG% secondary stat but significant ATK% buffs via its passive.
Tidal Shadow	R5 Tidal Shadow is Gaming’s best free and permanent option. Gaming can guarantee 100% uptime on its passive with his self-healing.
R5 Mailed Flower	This is an event-exclusive weapon released in Version 3.5. R5 Mailed Flower is a generic EM and ATK% stat stick, performing on par with R5 Tidal Shadow in Vaporize and Melt teams.
Lithic Blade	Lithic Blade is a good option at high refinements. It requires at least one other Liyue character on the team to be viable.
Skyward Pride	Skyward Pride performs on par with R5 Tidal Shadow and gains a bit of value if Gaming has high ER requirements. The Vacuum Blades are negligible damage overall.
Ultimate Overlord’s Mega Magic Sword	This is an event-exclusive weapon released in Version 4.3. Ultimate Overlord’s Mega Magic Sword is an alternative to Tidal Shadow that gains more value if Gaming has higher ER requirements.

Teams

Teambuilding

Bennett	Utility Bennett is highly recommended in any of Gaming’s teams. His Elemental Burst provides healing and a strong Flat ATK buff within its AoE. On top of that, his Elemental Skill helps lower Gaming’s ER requirements. Bennett also applies enough Pyro with his Skill and Burst to enable consistent 4pc Viridescent Venerer setups. Positioning Gaming should try to stay within Bennett’s Burst radius to maintain the Flat ATK buff and continuous healing, an issue commonly referred to as “Circle Impact”. Constellation 6 C6 Bennett provides a nice Pyro DMG Bonus and infuses Pyro into Gaming’s Normal and Plunging Attacks. This Pyro Infusion can cause issues in Vaporize and Melt teams due to the additional Pyro application, so Gaming needs to avoid using Normal Attacks between enhanced Plunging Attacks in these teams. In teams with Xianyun, Gaming’s Pyro-infused Plunging Attacks fill downtime between enhanced Plunging Attacks. Ultimately, you do not need Bennett’s C6 to play Gaming, but if you have it, then you need to be careful with Gaming’s combo in Vape and Melt teams.
Xianyun	Xianyun is an excellent teammate who provides healing, 4pc Viridescent Venerer RES Shred, and a great Additive Base DMG Bonus to Plunging Attacks. She also allows Gaming to perform regular Plunges during Man Chai’s downtime. She is one of Gaming’s best teammates in Vaporize, Melt, and Mono Pyro teams.
Healers	A healer is generally recommended in Gaming’s teams to maintain his A1 Passive, A4 Passive, and Constellation 2. Bennett or Xianyun are usually the preferred healers, but other options are possible like Kokomi, Kuki Shinobu, and Jean.
Off-Fielders	Gaming requires uninterrupted field time to execute his enhanced Plunging Attack combo. As such, off-field supports and damage dealers are required as teammates. Set up their abilities before Gaming takes the field.

Vaporize

Vaporize is Gaming’s most recommended team archetype.

• Healer: A healer is recommended in at least one team slot to keep Gaming above 50% HP to maintain his A1 Passive, A4 Passive, and C2.
• Bennett: Bennett is the most recommended unit in the healer slot for his aforementioned utility, as well as his ability to enable Pyro Swirls.
• Hydro: Gaming triggers Reverse Vaporize on his Plunging Attacks as long as there is sufficient off-field Hydro application. 
• Anemo: An Anemo unit on the team can provide 4pc Viridescent Venerer RES Shred as long as there is a second Pyro unit to create a Pyro aura.
• Flex: The last team slot could be any off-fielder except a Dendro unit (to avoid Burning) or a Cryo unit (since Gaming triggers Shatter instead of Melt against Frozen enemies). Double Hydro teams are possible.

Notable Teammates

Hydro

Furina	Furina provides good Hydro application and a great DMG% buff. Gaming’s HP drain from his enhanced Plunging Attacks helps stack her Fanfare more quickly.  Additional Elemental Reactions or Pyro application (like from C6 Bennett’s Pyro Infusion) can disrupt Furina’s Hydro application, causing Gaming to lose Vapes.
Xingqiu, Yelan	Xingqiu and Yelan provide enough Hydro application for Gaming to consistently trigger Vaporize with his enhanced Plunging Attacks. Gaming needs to weave in 1–2 Normal Attacks between enhanced Plunges to proc their Bursts. Xingqiu provides defensive utility and slightly more Hydro application (thanks to his orbitals), while Yelan provides a ramping DMG% buff.

Healer

Xianyun	Xianyun is a great teammate for Gaming who provides healing, 4pc Viridescent Venerer Pyro RES Shred, and a great Additive Base DMG Bonus to Plunging Attacks. She also allows Gaming to perform regular Plunging Attacks during Man Chai’s downtime.  Xianyun and Furina have excellent synergy. Xianyun’s teamwide healing counteracts Furina’s HP drain and allows quicker stacking of Fanfare points. Note that the Anemo application from her Burst’s coordinated Anemo attacks can clear the Hydro aura faster in single-target scenarios; however, this isn’t usually an issue unless playing with Thoma or C6 Bennett.
Bennett	Bennett is highly recommended in any of Gaming’s Vaporize teams. His Elemental Burst provides healing and a strong Flat ATK buff within its AoE. On top of that, his Elemental Skill helps lower Gaming’s ER requirements. Bennett also applies enough Pyro with his Skill and Burst to enable consistent 4pc Viridescent Venerer setups.
Kokomi	Kokomi provides healing and supplemental Hydro application to Furina, Xingqiu, or Yelan. She can also hold Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers and 4pc Tenacity of the Millelith to also buff Gaming’s ATK.
Jean	Jean provides healing and 4pc Viridescent Venerer RES Shred. Do not play Jean and Bennett together, since their Sunfire interaction applies far too much Pyro on the enemy.
Sayu	Sayu provides healing and 4pc Viridescent Venerer RES Shred. She can be safely used with Bennett.

Flex

Sucrose	Sucrose provides 4pc Viridescent Venerer RES Shred, buffs EM with her A1 and A4 Passives, and can further buff Gaming by holding Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers.
Kazuha	Kazuha provides an Elemental DMG Bonus via his A4 Passive, minor grouping, and the typical 4pc Viridescent Venerer RES Shred. Kazuha cannot absorb Pyro into his Elemental Burst since its Pyro application disrupts Gaming’s Vaporizes. Either absorb Hydro into his Burst or don’t use his Burst at all.
Zhongli	Zhongli provides the strongest shield in the game and 20% Universal RES Shred. He can also hold 4pc Tenacity of the Millelith or 4pc Instructor to further buff Gaming. Zhongli is a great option if you need a shield for Serpent Spine.
Fischl	Fischl offers strong personal damage that can also reliably clear Pyro auras caused by C6 Bennett’s Pyro Infusion. Gaming can occasionally trigger Overloaded and Vaporize (Overvape) off a single enhanced Plunging Attack with Fischl’s Electro application.
Thoma, C4 Yanfei	Thoma and C4 Yanfei enable consistent Pyro Swirl setups for 4pc Viridescent Venerer while also granting a shield. It is not recommended to weave in Normal Attacks with Thoma and Furina on the same team, since Thoma’s additional Pyro application can overtake the enemy Hydro aura, preventing Gaming from triggering Vaporize consistently.

Example Teams

This is not a comprehensive list of teams. The inclusion or exclusion of any given team does not necessarily reflect its power level.

This is one of Gaming’s best teams. Xianyun’s teamwide healing helps counteract Furina’s teamwide HP drain. Furina’s DMG% buff is great and her Hydro application allows Gaming to consistently trigger Vaporize without needing to weave in Normal Attacks. Bennett provides fantastic ATK buffs and may enable Pyro Swirl setups (depending on when Furina’s Salon Members apply Hydro).

Sample Rotation
Furina ED Q > Bennett EQ > Xianyun EPQ > Gaming combo > Bennett E > Gaming N2

This is a strong 4-star only VV Vape team. Gaming’s default combo with N2 between Skills triggers Xingqiu’s Burst. Sucrose can hold Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers in this team.

Sample Rotation
Xingqiu EDQ N1 > Bennett ED¹Q> Sucrose N2 E > Gaming combo > Bennett E > Gaming N2

¹Maintain enough distance from enemies such that Xingqiu’s orbital Rain Swords do not make contact after Bennett uses his Burst, otherwise Sucrose cannot consistently Swirl Pyro.

This is a Bennett-less Gaming Vaporize team that requires him to weave in a Normal Attack between Plunging Attacks to proc Yelan’s Burst. Gaming takes full advantage of Yelan’s ramping DMG% buff. C4+ Yanfei creates a shield (which helps maintain Serpent Spine stacks) and applies a Pyro aura for Xianyun to Swirl. This is a team where multiple Favonius weapons may be useful.

Sample Rotation
Yelan EQ > Yanfei EQ > Xianyun EPQ > Gaming combo

This is a potent option that trades 4pc Viridescent Venerer Pyro RES Shred for Fischl’s strong personal damage. If you have C6 Bennett, Fischl can reliably clear Pyro auras so Gaming can still consistently trigger Vaporize.

Sample Rotation
Furina ED Q > Bennett EQ > Fischl E/Q¹ > Gaming combo > Bennett E > Gaming N2
¹Fischl alternates Burst and Skill.

Melt

Gaming can trigger Forward Melt off an enemy Cryo aura with his enhanced Plunging Attacks, leading to high damage potential. However, there are a few issues with Melt teams that should be addressed.

1. Cryo Application: At least two sources of consistent off-field Cryo application are necessary to maintain a Cryo aura on the enemy. The only character who can provide enough Cryo application by themselves for the entire duration of Gaming’s field time is C6 Kaeya.
2. C6 Bennett: If you have C6 Bennett on the team, Gaming cannot weave in Normal Attacks between enhanced Plunging Attacks. Instead, he should dash towards Man Chai to try to perform enhanced Plunging Attacks in quicker succession.
3. ER Requirements: In Melt teams without Bennett, Gaming has high ER requirements. Additionally, his teammates tend to have high ER requirements as well.

Notable Teammates

Cryo

Rosaria	Rosaria grants a nice CRIT Rate buff and can hold 4pc Noblesse Oblige. Her Burst has a limited AoE, so positioning is important to consider.
Kaeya	Kaeya provides Cryo application that follows Gaming. C6 Kaeya provides enough Cryo application by himself for Gaming to consistently trigger Melt with his enhanced Plunging Attacks. Kaeya’s Cryo application is consistent as long as Gaming can stay close to the enemy. This is more easily achieved against large enemies and bosses, but it may be difficult against smaller or mobile enemies.
Diona	Diona consolidates the roles of shielder, healer, buffer, and enabler in Gaming’s Melt teams. However, she does suffer from the “Circle Impact” issues that characters like Bennett or Rosaria also face. Rosaria or Kaeya are recommended as the other Cryo applier. At C6, Diona grants a 200 EM buff while Gaming is within her Burst AoE, which boosts his Melt damage considerably.
Layla	Layla provides the second-strongest shield in the game and can hold 4pc Tenacity of the Millelith (or 4pc Noblesse Oblige) to also buff Gaming. She provides consistent Cryo application with her Burst and Shooting Stars.
Ganyu	Ganyu provides consistent AoE Cryo application and a Cryo DMG% buff that can boost the other Cryo character’s damage. Ganyu can hold 4pc Noblesse Oblige to increase Gaming’s ATK, but this comes at a cost to her personal damage.
Shenhe	Shenhe is a potential secondary Cryo character who applies Cryo with her Burst and buffs her Cryo teammate’s damage. Additionally, her A4 Passive’s Hold Skill buff increases the damage of Gaming’s enhanced Plunging Attacks. It is not recommended to run Shenhe with Layla as it is usually insufficient Cryo application.

Anemo + Flex

Bennett	Bennett, yet again, is a great teammate in Gaming’s Melt teams. If Bennett is C6, Gaming cannot use Normal Attacks while waiting for Man Chai to return since this is too much Pyro application.
Xianyun	Xianyun is still a great teammate in Gaming’s Melt teams, offering her typical buffs. She is not a source of Cryo application.
Lynette	Lynette prioritizes absorbing Cryo into her Burst’s Taunt, so she can be a functional secondary Cryo applier for Rosaria or Kaeya. She also provides a small ATK% buff via her A1 Passive after using her Burst.
Kazuha	Kazuha can absorb Cryo into his Elemental Burst, which allows Gaming to get consistent Melts. However, Kazuha prioritizes absorbing Cryo last, so there cannot be any Pyro, Electro, or Hydro aura on any enemy. Getting both Cryo Absorption and a Pyro Swirl in the same rotation can be difficult and requires careful planning.
Sucrose	Sucrose can absorb Cryo into her Elemental Burst, but it can be cumbersome to ensure this. Nonetheless, she can provide her EM buffs and hold Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers.

Example Teams

This is not a comprehensive list of teams. The inclusion or exclusion of any given team does not necessarily reflect its power level.

Rosaria and Diona provide enough combined Cryo application to allow Gaming to consistently trigger Melt on his Plunging Attacks. Rosaria grants a nice CRIT Rate buff. Diona provides a shield and a massive EM buff with her C6. For support builds, either Rosaria or Diona holds 4pc Noblesse Oblige, Bennett holds 4pc Instructor, and Diona can hold 4pc Song of Days Past if available.

Sample Rotation
Testing in progress. Stay tuned!

C6 Kaeya is the only character who provides enough Cryo application by themselves. If Bennett is C6, do not weave in Normal Attacks between Plunging Attacks.

Sample Rotation
Bennett EQ > Kaeya EQ > Bennett E > Xianyun EPQ > Gaming combo

The above rotation allows Kaeya to snapshot Bennett’s buff. If you want more uptime on Bennett’s buff for Gaming, follow this rotation:

Kaeya EQ > Bennett EQ > Xianyun EPQ > Gaming combo > Kaeya E > Bennett E > Gaming N2

Mono Pyro

Mono Pyro teams capitalize on lower ER requirements and 4pc Viridescent Venerer Pyro RES Shred that benefits the entire team. Bennett and Xiangling are the best Pyro options for this archetype. Either Kazuha or Xianyun are the best Anemo units.

While other Pyro and Anemo off-fielders may be used for a Mono Pyro composition, the viability of the resulting team is much lower.

Example Teams

Kazuha provides a Pyro DMG% buff via his A4 Passive (in addition to 4pc VV Pyro RES Shred).

Sample Rotation
Bennett E > Kazuha tEPQ > Bennett Q E > Xiangling Q E > Kazuha hEP > Gaming combo

Xianyun buffs Plunging Attacks and allows Gaming to perform additional Pyro Plunging Attacks if you have C6 Bennett.

Sample Rotation
Bennett Q E > Xiangling Q E > Xianyun EPQ > Gaming combo > Bennett E > Gaming / Xiangling

Bennett uses another instance of his Skill towards the end of the rotation to funnel Pyro Particles to either Gaming or Xiangling.

Chevreuse Overloaded

Overloaded teams have become more viable with the release of Chevreuse. Chevreuse effectively replaces a 4pc Viridescent Venerer holder. The knockback from Overloaded can make gameplay difficult or slow against smaller enemies, but this archetype has no issue against heavy enemies. Bennett is the best option in the last team slot.

Example Teams

This is not a comprehensive list of teams. The inclusion or exclusion of any given team does not necessarily reflect its power level.

Chevreuse provides buffs, Fischl provides off-field Electro damage, and Bennett does what he does best.

Sample Rotation
(Fischl C)¹ > Chevreuse (Q) hE > Bennett EQ > Fischl E/Q² > Gaming combo > Bennett E > (Gaming N2)

¹First rotation only.
²Fischl alternates Burst and Skill.

Credits

quinslay, irokei, leifa, june, duckfero, nooot, whalien, luno_, athene., emiliabyss, caramielle, polomo, alehannita

Team images made with the KQM portrait generator.