Updated for Version 4.0
Kirara is a 4-star Dendro Sword character in Genshin Impact who provides shielding, fast on-field Dendro application, and unique mobility. Learn about Kirara’s best builds, Talent priority, 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.
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Table of Contents
New Content
 Lyney | A Pneuma-aligned character with a Charged Shot playstyle. Kirara provides shielding for Lyney and can help enable his A4 Passive through Burning but has no significant advantages otherwise. |
 Lynette | Lynette can hold 4pc Viridescent Venerer in Aggravate (Quicken) teams. She also provides a teamwide ATK% buff. Her Ousia alignment may be useful against some Fontaine enemies. |
 Fleuve Cendre Ferryman | A viable and free weapon that provides plenty of ER. |
Infographic
Design: cuppacote
Content: chasing_haze
Character Overview
Playstyles
Off-Field Support
Kirara uses the shield from her Skill to increase the survivability of her team.
On-Field Driver
Kirara uses her Hold Skill to quickly apply Dendro and literally drive reactions.
Talents
Level and Talent Priority
To maximize Kirara’s HP and thus her Shield Absorption, it is recommended to level her to 90.
Talent Priority
Skill > Burst
For both her off-field and on-field playstyles, Kirara’s Skill provides the majority of her utility. Her Normal Attacks are not an important part of her kit and can be left unleveled.
Talent Overview
Normal Attack | Boxcutter
Talent Description
Normal Attack
Performs up to 4 rapid strikes.
Charged Attack
Consumes a certain amount of Stamina to unleash 3 rapid claw strikes.
Plunging Attack
Plunges from mid-air to strike the ground below, damaging opponents along the path and dealing AoE DMG upon impact.
A standard set of Normal Attacks; they deal little damage and are generally unused even in on-field roles.
Elemental Skill | Meow-teor Kick
Talent Description
Press
Leaps into the air with all the agility of a cat passing through the bushes, and thwacks her foes with a flying kick that deals AoE Dendro DMG while creating a Shield of Safe Transport. This will also briefly apply Dendro to Kirara.
The shield will absorb Dendro DMG with 250% effectiveness. The shield’s DMG absorption will be based on Kirara’s Max HP and will not exceed a certain percentage of that Max HP. The remaining DMG absorption on a Shield of Safe Transport will stack on a new one when it is created, and its duration will reset.
Hold
Out of her desire to “deliver within half a day,” Kirara deploys a Shield of Safe Transport identical to the one that can be created by pressing the skill. She will also curl up into a special express delivery box, entering the Urgent Neko Parcel state in order to move and fight more swiftly.
Urgent Neko Parcel
- Deals Dendro DMG to opponents she crashes into. This effect can be triggered once on each opponent every 0.5s.
- When in this state, Kirara’s movement speed, climbing speed, and jumping power are all increased, and her Stamina Consumption from climbing is increased.
- When the duration ends or the skill is used again, a Flipclaw Strike more powerful than the attack in the Mode will be unleashed, dealing AoE Dendro DMG.
- The Urgent Neko Parcel state lasts a maximum of 10s. When the state ends, the skill will enter CD. The longer Kirara spends in this state, the longer the CD will be.
- Sprinting or actively canceling climbing will end this state early.
This Skill deals Dendro damage and generates a shield; it also allows Kirara to enter an augmented movement state (known as “Urgent Neko Parcel”) when held.
Tap Skill
It is generally not recommended to use Kirara’s Tap Skill due to the existence of the Short Hold Skill tech.
Short Hold Skill
This method involves briefly holding Kirara’s Skill before pressing the Skill button again to cancel the Urgent Neko Parcel state. The Short Hold Skill tech still takes around as much field time as a Tap Skill but generates 4 Dendro Particles instead of 3, gains more A1 stacks, deals more damage, and applies Dendro twice instead of once.
Hold Skill (Full)
Kirara’s Hold Skill can apply Dendro very quickly, although it requires frequent contact with enemies.
Elemental Burst | Secret Art: Surprise Dispatch
Talent Description
Smash opponents with a Special Delivery Package used for punishing parcel thieves, dealing AoE Dendro DMG. After the Special Delivery Package explodes, it will split up into many Cat Grass Cardamoms that will explode either upon contact with opponents or after a period of time, dealing AoE Dendro DMG.
Kirara’s Burst has modest damage and AoE Dendro application, albeit inconsistent. It may also be important for triggering 4pc Noblesse Oblige.
The Cardamom bomblets dropped by Kirara’s Burst can be grouped with certain abilities. See the Anemo Teammate Synergies section for more details.
Ascension 1 Passive | Bewitching, Betwitching Tails
Talent Description
When Kirara is in the Urgent Neko Parcel state of Meow-teor Kick, each impact against an opponent will grant her a stack of Reinforced Packaging. This effect can be triggered once for each opponent hit every 0.5s. Max 3 stacks. When the Urgent Neko Parcel state ends, each stack of Reinforced Packaging will create 1 Shield of Safe Transport for Kirara. The shields that are created this way will have 20% of the DMG absorption that the Shield of Safe Transport produced by Meow-teor Kick would have. If Kirara is already protected by a Shield of Safe Transport created by Meow-teor Kick, its DMG absorption will stack with these shields and its duration will reset.
Kirara gains stacks when she hits enemies during her Urgent Neko Parcel state, which are then converted into additional DMG absorption — up to 60%, 3 stacks — when the state ends. It is possible to receive all stacks using the Short Hold Skill tech.
Ascension 4 Passive | Pupillary Variance
Talent Description
Every 1,000 Max HP Kirara possesses will increase the DMG dealt by Meow-teor Kick by 0.4%, and the DMG dealt by Secret Art: Surprise Dispatch by 0.3%.
Adds some HP scaling to her Skill and Burst. If trying to maximize her Talent damage, ATK is still preferred over HP.
Constellations
Constellation 1 | Material Circulation
Talent Description
Every 8,000 Max HP Kirara possesses will cause her to create 1 extra Cat Grass Cardamom when she uses Secret Art: Surprise Dispatch. A maximum of 4 extra can be created this way.
Adds additional Burst hits with HP% investment, which helps generate more Dendro Cores in AoE.
Constellation 2 | Perfectly Packaged
Talent Description
When Kirara is in the Urgent Neko Parcel state of Meow-teor Kick, she will grant other party members she crashes into Critical Transport Shields.
The DMG absorptions of Critical Transport Shield is 40% of the maximum absorption Meow-teor Kick’s normal Shields of Safe Transport are capable of, and will absorb Dendro DMG with 250% effectiveness.
Critical Transport Shields last 12s and can be triggered once on each character every 10s.
Does not affect single-player mode, but grants Co-Op teammates a shield when Kirara crashes into them in her Urgent Neko Parcel state.
Constellation 3 | Universal Recognition
Talent Description
Increase the Level of Meow-teor Kick by 3.
Maximum upgrade level is 15.
A much appreciated boost to her Shield Absorption, and a small increase to her damage output.
Constellation 4 | Steed of Skanda
Talent Description
After active character(s) protected by Shields of Safe Transport or Critical Transport Shields hit opponents with Normal, Charged, or Plunging Attacks, Kirara will perform a coordinated attack with them using Small Cat Grass Cardamoms, dealing 200% of her ATK as Dendro DMG. DMG dealt this way is considered Elemental Burst DMG. This effect can be triggered once every 3.8s. This CD is shared between all party members.
Allows Kirara to apply Dendro off-field three times per Skill use, assuming the on-field characters hit enemies with their Normal Attack Talents. A slight improvement to Kirara’s otherwise nonexistent off-field Dendro application, though it is still not enough for her to be a solo off-field Dendro unit in most Bloom-based teams.
Constellation 5 | A Thousands Miles in a Day
Talent Description
Increase the Level of Secret Art: Surprise Dispatch by 3.
Maximum upgrade level is 15.
A simple increase to her Burst damage; not particularly significant considering its underwhelming damage.
Constellation 6 | Countless Sights to See
Talent Description
All nearby party members will gain 12% All Elemental DMG Bonus within 15s after Kirara uses her Elemental Skill or Burst.
A useful damage buff that is easily maintained in quickswap teams. It is most valuable in Quicken teams that have multiple damage dealers.
Artifacts
ER Requirements
The table below assumes that off-field Kirara uses 2 Short Hold Skills per rotation. Each proc of a Favonius weapon decreases her ER needs by ~10%.
| Solo Dendro | ~160% |
| Solo Dendro, Electro Resonance | ~120-140% |
| Double Dendro | ~100-120% |
Kirara’s ER requirements are generally low and can be met easily with an ER weapon and some ER substats. However, it is still viable to forgo ER and use her Burst every other rotation; this allows for more stat allocation towards her shielding, since her Burst is not very significant to team damage.
On-field Kirara’s ER requirements will vary depending on the team but can be as low as ~100%.
Use the Energy Recharge Calculator to determine the exact ER requirements for your team and rotation.
Artifact Stats
 Sands |  Goblet |  Circlet |
| HP% | HP% | HP% / CRIT Rate (Favonius) |
Substats: ER (until requirements) > HP% > CRIT Rate (Favonius)
Since Kirara usually does not build for damage, her only important stats are HP% for Shield Absorption and ER to Burst if desired (see ER Requirements). CRIT Rate is a desirable stat if Kirara uses Favonius Sword.
Artifact Sets
 2pc HP% + 2pc HP% | Lacks buffing capability, but unconditionally maximizes Kirara’s shield strength. |
 4pc Instructor | Provides a teamwide EM buff that is much appreciated in Dendro teams. She can maintain this buff consistently in quickswap teams. |
 4pc Tenacity of the Millelith (4TotM) | Enables the strongest possible shield if using Kirara’s full Hold Skill. 4TotM also grants a teamwide ATK% buff that can be snapshot by teammates. For dynamic abilities, off-field Kirara has lackluster uptime on the passive. |
 4pc Deepwood Memories (4DM) | A must-have for teams triggering Spread or any sort of Bloom-derivative reactions. Although off-field Kirara may not have the most consistent uptime with the 4pc set effect, she can still hold 4DW if no one else can. |
 4pc Noblesse Oblige (4NO) | If the team benefits from the ATK% buff and Kirara can Burst every rotation, 4NO is a viable option. |
Weapons
 Favonius Sword | Kirara’s most recommended option. Decreases both Kirara and her teammates’ ER needs. However, Kirara should build CRIT Rate to reliably trigger its passive. |
 Key of Khaj-Nisut | Currently the only HP% secondary stat Sword. It allows for maximum shield strength, and its team buff is useful as well. If using Kirara’s Short Hold Skill tech, it is recommended to stay in the Urgent Neko Parcel state long enough to gain maximum Key stacks. |
 Sacrificial Sword | Increases Kirara’s batterying capabilities by allowing her to generate more Energy particles. Also makes it easier for Kirara to gain maximum stacks from her A1 Passive. |
 Sapwood Blade | Kirara’s best craftable option, which provides ER to Kirara and an EM buff to the teammate who picks up the leaf. |
| Festering Desire / Fleuve Cendre Ferryman | F2P options that provide ER and buffs to Kirara’s Skill. |
 Freedom-Sworn | Kirara can easily activate its buff with her Short Hold Skill and Burst, but its passive cooldown limits its effectiveness. Kirara also does not care for its EM mainstat. |
 Primordial Jade Cutter | One of Kirara’s best choices for personal damage, along with a small HP% increase. |
Teams
Teambuilding
Kirara slots best in quickswap teams due to her relatively short cooldowns. Below we examine some aspects of her kit that impact her other potential team options.
Off-Field Dendro Application
- Kirara’s off-field Dendro application is rather poor even at C4; if using her as an off-field support in a team that relies on Bloom reactions, it is highly recommended to bring a second Dendro character to trigger Blooms consistently.
Battery Potential
- Kirara’s Short Hold Skill tech generates 4 Dendro particles at once, with a relatively short cooldown — this makes her a good battery for other Dendro characters, such as Alhaitham.
Defensive Utility
- As a Dendro shielder, Kirara provides notable survivability against Bloom self-damage, particularly in Burgeon or Nilou Bloom teams.
- Baizhu and Yaoyao are stiff competition as off-field Dendro defensive supports.
On-Field Driver
- It can be difficult to utilize Kirara as an on-field driver due to the following reasons:
- Kirara’s Hold Skill cannot trigger certain abilities in the game such as Xingqiu, Yelan, Thoma, and Beidou’s Bursts.
- By extension, on-field Kirara lacks many effective off-field Hydro options for Bloom teams.
- Her Skill’s long cooldown if using the full Hold duration causes significant downtime in her personal Dendro application.
- Kirara’s low personal damage makes her lackluster as a Spread DPS.
Teammate Synergies
Dendro
 Nahida | Nahida’s excellent Dendro application makes up for Kirara’s limited Dendro application in Bloom teams. However, Kirara’s poor off-field Dendro application can cause issues with proccing Nahida’s Skill, particularly in Nilou Bloom teams with on-field Hydro units. |
  Alhaitham, Tighnari | Kirara’s shield provides valuable Interruption Resistance and defensive utility for these on-field DPS units. She can also generate Dendro Particles to lower their ER requirements. Her 12s cooldown lines up very well with Tighnari’s own Skill cooldowns. While not as straightforward, it is also possible to use her Skill twice per rotation in Alhaitham’s teams for maximum shield uptime. |
  Dendro Traveler, Collei | F2P options to apply Dendro off-field, since Kirara’s own off-field Dendro application is lackluster. |
Electro
 Keqing | As an on-field Aggravate DPS, Keqing’s short cooldowns synergize well with Kirara’s 12s cooldowns. |
  Fischl, Yae Miko | Fischl provides consistent off-field Electro application. She is particularly noteworthy for her A4 Passive’s exceptional damage output in Aggravate teams. Yae functions similarly to Fischl; she has lower Energy generation but a strong Burst nuke. She can also function as an on-field Aggravate DPS. |
 Lisa | Lisa’s Burst has a high Energy cost but provides valuable DEF Shred; she can also hold TTDS. |
  Raiden, Kuki Shinobu | Sources of off-field Electro application, mainly for Hyperbloom teams. Additionally, Raiden buffs Burst damage, and Kuki provides healing. |
Hydro
 Nilou | Nilou enables a much stronger variant of the Pure Bloom team, where Kirara provides much-needed defensive utility. Nilou also supplies mobile off-field Hydro application that is not reliant on Normal Attacks, albeit comparatively slowly. See the Nilou Bloom Teams section for more details. |
  Kokomi, Barbara | Hydro healer options for Bloom teams. Kokomi is one of the few viable options for off-field Hydro application in on-field Kirara teams. Barbara’s Skill follows Kirara and has particular synergy with on-field Kirara in Nilou Bloom teams. Solo off-field Barbara is not recommended due to her limited Hydro application and long cooldowns. |
 Ayato | Ayato is usually used as an on-field source of Hydro for Bloom teams. He is also one of on-field Kirara’s few options for off-field Hydro application, but requires very high ER investment to Burst every rotation. |
| Xingqiu, Yelan, Candace | Off-field Hydro appliers; they do not have direct synergy with Kirara, but are instead common picks in Bloom-related teams. It is not recommended to use on-field Kirara with these characters, as she cannot proc their Bursts during her Urgent Neko Parcel state. Xingqiu’s damage reduction via his Rain Sword orbitals increases Kirara’s effective Shield Strength, but does not mitigate incoming Bloom damage. |
Pyro
 Thoma | Currently the most effective option to trigger Burgeons. Off-field Kirara serves as a good defensive option since building Thoma for EM leaves his shield weak. Thoma does not synergize well with on-field Kirara. |
Anemo
Anemo units are most noteworthy in Aggravate (Quicken) teams, where they typically hold the 4pc Viridescent Venerer set to shred enemy RES for the Electro DPS unit.
 Kazuha | A premier pick in Aggravate teams thanks to his potent grouping, buffs, and personal damage. Kazuha can pull Cardamoms with his Skill. |
 Sucrose | Provides a mix of EM buffs and grouping, and can hold TTDS for a potent ATK% buff. She can also group Cardamoms with her Skill and Burst. |
| Jean, Lynette, Anemo Traveler | Are able to group Kirara’s Cardamoms or push enemies towards them. Lynette’s grouping is minor and locked behind C1, but she also provides a nice ATK% buff. Jean provides healing, although this may be unnecessary with Kirara’s shield. |
Cryo
The current roster of Cryo characters has little direct synergy with Kirara.
Geo
The current roster of Geo characters has little direct synergy with Kirara.
Team Archetypes
Quicken
Kirara’s shield uptime aligns well with the short rotations of many Quicken teams, such as those with Keqing or Tighnari. She synergizes well with an on-field Dendro (Spread) DPS by providing Dendro particles.
Hyperbloom / Burgeon
Kirara mainly provides survivability through her strong shield. As an off-field support, a second Dendro unit is required to keep up Dendro application. Kirara is not recommended as an on-field driver due to the lack of synergistic Hydro appliers and Burgeon triggers.
Nilou Bloom
Kirara provides a strong shield for Nilou Bloom teams, although it is still recommended to bring a healer to cover for possible downtime.
In a purely off-field role, a fast Dendro applier such as Alhaitham or on-field Nahida is highly recommended to make up for Kirara’s poor Dendro application. On-field Kirara is a viable option, particularly when paired with Barbara.
General Flex Shielder
Kirara provides moderate shield strength and low off-field Dendro application that will barely interfere with other reactions. She works best in quickswap teams due to her shield’s relatively short duration of 12s. However, she faces stiff competition from other shield units who provide greater utility — such as being able to hold 4TotM — damage, and/or ease-of-use.
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.
Credits
chasing_haze, nikatosaurus, natc, irokei, idkanonymized, aciewacie, polomo, alehannita