Updated for Version 7.1

Skirk is a 5-star Cryo Sword character in Genshin Impact who either acts as an on-field Normal Attack DPS or a quickswap Burst DPS. Learn about Skirk’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.

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Table of Contents

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Credits to: laynnea, acerbus114, irokei, and KQM Staff

Character Overview

Pros

Gorgeous animations with fast and snappy gameplay
Ability to choose between two playstyles, which offers variety
Strong early vertical-investment options with her C1, her C2, and R1 Azurelight
Her strong baseline can be further enhanced with combos, giving her an extremely high skill ceiling.

Cons

Significantly lower damage output without Escoffier or Vodyanitsa
Extremely inflexible team compositions, forcing her to use only Hydro and Cryo teammates or deactivate half of her kit
Her A1 Passive is both a key part of her kit and hard-countered by enemies with an innate Pyro aura
Optimized combos can be mechanically demanding and reliant on less controllable factors such as FPS
Terrible pet sitter for primordial beasts or Fatui Harbingers.

Playstyles

On-Field DPS

Skirk enters her Seven-Phase Flash state with her Tap Skill to dish out massive damage with her Normal Attacks. Against enemies with stall mechanics, Skirk can charge a regular Elemental Burst with her Hold Skill to use at the start of her field time along with her Tap Skill.

Quickswap DPS

Skirk can also play as a Burst-based quickswap DPS. She swaps in to use her Hold Skill, then nukes the enemy with her Burst, before swapping out to free up the field for a Cryo or Hydro on-field DPS.

Talents

Talent Priority

Skill > Burst

Skirk’s Skill makes up the majority of her damage in her on-field playstyle and should be leveled first. Her Burst should be prioritized in her quickswap playstyle. Leveling both eventually is recommended, regardless of playstyle. Although her Burst deals no damage while she is in her Skill state, it’s still worth leveling in teams where she wants to use a split rotation, and having the option to on-field if needed in quickswap teams can be helpful in a pinch. Though the scaling is marginal (1% per level), the Normal Attack DMG Bonus from Skirk’s special Burst also scales with her Burst level.

While leveling Skirk to 90 is a pitiful damage increase relative to the cost, her damage share is large enough that it’s worth considering once you start running out of other things to improve.

There is no need to level Skirk’s Normal Attack.

Talent Overview

Normal Attack

Elemental Skill

Elemental Burst

Ascension 1 Passive

Ascension 4 Passive

Utility Passive

Normal Attack

Normal Attack | Havoc: Sunder

Talent Description

Normal Attack
Performs up to 5 consecutive attacks.

Charged Attack
Consumes a certain amount of Stamina to hurl a spinning crystal spear, dealing DMG to opponents ahead.

Plunging Attack
Plunges from mid-air to strike the ground below, damaging opponents along the path and dealing AoE DMG upon impact.

Since Skirk’s Skill-state attacks scale with Skill levels, her Normal Attack Talent is unremarkable.

Elemental Skill

Elemental Skill | Havoc: Warp

Talent Description

Imitates the combat style of “The Foul.” Produces different effects depending on whether you Tap or Hold.

Tap
Skirk gains 45 Serpent’s Subtlety and switches to Seven-Phase Flash mode.

Hold
Skirk gains 45 Serpent’s Subtlety and will continuously move at high speed. Her interruption resistance is increased in this state.
During this time, Skirk can control her movement direction and move atop water. She can also use this Skill again to end rapid movement prematurely.

Skirk has two versions of her Skill — a Tap and a Hold variant. Both generate 45 Serpent’s Subtlety points on cast, and the Skill cooldown only starts ticking down once the Skill state ends. Neither deals any damage on the Skill cast itself.

The Tap Skill variant lets Skirk switch to her Seven-Phase Flash state, which grants her a Cryo Conversion, far more impressive damage multipliers, and a stylish outfit change. She also gains increased interruption resistance on par with Xingqiu’s Rain Swords. While in the Seven-Phase state, Skirk continually consumes Serpent’s Subtlety, and she exits the state either after 12.5s or upon running out of Serpent’s Subtlety. As a result, her A1 Passive is vital to ensure she can remain in her Tap Skill state for the full duration. Note that upon exiting her Seven-Phase Flash state, Skirk will clear any excess Serpent’s Subtlety points.

The Hold Skill variant instead lets Skirk enter a fast-movement state, which she can use to glide around while absorbing nearby Void Rifts through her A1 Passive, for an additional 8 Serpent’s Subtlety points per Rift. She can exit her Hold Skill by either tapping Skill again or letting the duration run out. Unlike with her Tap Skill, Serpent’s Subtlety points aren’t cleared when Skirk’s Hold Skill ends.

Elemental Burst

Elemental Burst | Havoc: Ruin

Talent Description

Skirk’s Elemental Burst is not reliant on Elemental Energy but instead on Serpent’s Subtlety.
When Skirk has at least 50 Serpent’s Subtlety, she can expend all her Serpent’s Subtlety to unleash her Elemental Burst, ripping the space before her apart and using rapid consecutive slashes that deal AoE Cryo DMG. At the same time, the DMG dealt by an instance of this Elemental Burst will be increased by every point of Serpent’s Subtlety over 50 when it is unleashed. Up to 12 points can be counted for this purpose.

When Skirk is in Seven-Phase Flash mode, Havoc: Ruin will be replaced by Havoc: Extinction.

Havoc: Extinction
A special Elemental Burst that can be used even without consuming Serpent’s Subtlety.
After using it, Skirk will gain the “All Shall Wither” effect, which will last until Seven-Phase Flash ends. After unlocking the Passive Talent Reason Beyond Reason, she can also absorb nearby Void Rifts.
While “All Shall Wither” is active, every 0.1s, after Skirk’s Normal Attack hits an opponent, that Normal Attack will deal increased DMG. If she absorbed any Void Rifts while using Havoc: Extinction, this Normal Attack’s DMG will be further increased based on the number of Rifts absorbed.
This effect will be canceled when it has triggered 10 times.

Skirk has two Bursts, and which she uses depends on whether she is in her Seven-Phase Flash state or not.

Skirk’s regular Burst is a powerful multi-hit nuke, which uses Serpent’s Subtlety points instead of Energy. It has a cost of 50 Serpent’s Subtlety, which is usually regenerated through one Hold Skill; 45 points from the Skill cast itself, and the remaining 5 from absorbing at minimum one nearby Void Rift. For each overcapping point up to 12, the multiplier of each hit of Skirk’s Burst is increased by 32.85% ATK (at Talent Level 9). A total of three Void Rifts are required to both charge the Burst and cap out the damage increase, though the difference between absorbing two and three Void Rifts is minor — Skirk is already at 11 out of 12 extra points after absorbing two Rifts.

In her Seven-Phase Flash state, Skirk’s regular Burst is replaced by a special variant that costs no Serpent’s Subtlety to use. It has a significantly shorter animation length and deals no damage on cast. Upon using it, Skirk absorbs up to three nearby Void Rifts and gains a Normal Attack DMG Bonus that scales with the number of Void Rifts absorbed. The DMG Bonus lasts for 10 Normal Attacks and is considered regular DMG%.

Ascension 1 Passive

Ascension 1 Passive | Reason Beyond Reason

Talent Description

When nearby party members trigger Frozen, Superconduct, Cryo Swirl, or Cryo Crystallize reactions against opponents, a Void Rift will be created near this opponent. This effect can be triggered once every 2.5s. 3 Void Rifts created by Skirk herself can exist on the field at once.

Skirk can use the following methods to absorb nearby Void Rifts:
· When she hits an opponent with a Charged Attack in her Seven-Phase Flash mode.
· When she uses the special Elemental Burst Havoc: Extinction while in Seven-Phase Flash mode.
· When she Holds her Elemental Skill Havoc: Warp to engage in rapid movement.

Each Rift absorbed will grant her 8 Serpent’s Subtlety points.

A vital part of Skirk’s kit. Skirk’s A1 Passive enables the generation of Void Rifts upon triggering Cryo reactions. At most three Void Rifts can exist at once, and Skirk can absorb them by either using her Charged Attack, her special Burst, or her Hold Skill. Each absorbed Rift grants her 8 Serpent’s Subtlety points, and a Rift can be generated once every 2.5s. Generally, Skirk needs to absorb 5 Void Rifts in order to have the full duration of her Seven-Phase Flash state.

Void Rifts are generated upon triggering any Cryo reaction except Melt. Since consistently absorbing Rifts is vital for ensuring that Skirk’s Seven-Phase state doesn’t end prematurely from running out of points, and at least one Rift is necessary to charge her Burst fully in her quickswap playstyle (unless she is C2+), this leaves Skirk struggling against any enemy with an innate Pyro aura — unless she kills them before the 45 Serpent’s Subtlety points from her Skill cast runs out, of course.

Ascension 4 Passive

Ascension 4 Passive | Return to Oblivion

Talent Description

When nearby Hydro party members’ Hydro attacks hit opponents, or when nearby Cryo party members apart from Skirk hit opponents with Cryo attacks, Skirk will gain the “Death’s Crossing” effect for 20s. Max 3 stacks, each stack’s duration is counted independently.

Each character can grant Skirk at most 1 “Death’s Crossing” stack by this means.
Each “Death’s Crossing” stack increases the Normal Attack DMG dealt by Skirk in Seven-Phase Flash mode to 110%/120%/170% of its original DMG and the DMG dealt when using her Elemental Burst Havoc: Ruin to 105%/115%/160% of its original DMG.

Skirk’s A4 increases her damage relative to how many Cryo / Hydro teammates she runs. The damage of her Seven-Phase Flash attacks and her regular Burst increases for each teammate that hits enemies with Hydro or Cryo attacks, up to three stacks. Each teammate can only generate one stack, and Skirk herself is unable to generate stacks.

This is a multiplicative buff rather than a simple DMG Bonus, similar to Neuvillette’s Ascension 1 Passive. Combined with the jump in multiplier being much bigger from 2 Hydro / Cryo teammates to 3 than from 1 to 2, this heavily incentivizes using her intended “Mono Freeze” teams.

Since the stack generation is tied to attacking enemies rather than dealing damage, shielded or immune enemies pose no issue.

Utility Passive

Utility Passive | Mutual Weapons Mentorship

Talent Description

When all party members are either Hydro or Cryo, and if there is at least 1 Hydro and 1 Cryo character, your own party members’ Elemental Skill Level is increased by 1.

Like master, like disciple; similar to Childe, Skirk’s Utility Passive also offers a teamwide Talent Level increase — though for Skills and not Normal Attacks.

Much like the above, this passive also incentivizes teams with only Cryo and Hydro characters, though this one is limited to only teams with both Elements. Regardless, Mono Cryo teams tend to be subpar for Skirk as she would have no way of generating Void Rifts except against enemies with an innate aura or Elemental shield. On the upside, it provides a nice boost to Skirk’s damage in her on-field playstyle and synergizes with many of her best teammates (as both Escoffier and Furina are Skill-based damage dealers).

Constellations

Constellation 1

Constellation 2

Constellation 3

Constellation 4

Constellation 5

Constellation 6

Constellation 1

Constellation 1 | Far to Fall

Constellation Description

Enhances the effects of the Passive Talent Reason Beyond Reason: Every Void Rift absorbed will summon a crystal blade to attack nearby opponents, dealing 500% of Skirk’s ATK as Cryo DMG. This DMG is considered Charged Attack DMG.
You must first unlock the Passive Talent Reason Beyond Reason.

A solid boost to Skirk’s personal damage that benefits both her on-field and quickswap playstyles. The damage is considered Charged Attack damage, which means the Constellation neither benefits from nor deactivates 4pc Galleries’ DMG Bonus.

Constellation 2

Constellation 2 | Into the Abyss

Constellation Description

After unleashing her Elemental Skill Havoc: Warp, Skirk will gain 10 additional Serpent’s Subtlety points.
When using her Elemental Burst Havoc: Ruin, the DMG of this Elemental Burst instance will be increased by taking up to 10 more Serpent’s Subtlety points into account.

Additionally, within 12.5s after Skirk unleashes the special Elemental Burst Havoc: Extinction while in her Seven-Phase Flash mode, her ATK is increased by 70%. This effect will be canceled when she leaves the Seven-Phase Flash mode.

Increases the Serpent’s Subtlety points regenerated by Skirk’s Skill from 45 to 55, and grants Skirk a different buff depending on whether she uses her regular or special Burst. When using her regular Burst, Skirk counts up to an additional 10 Serpent’s Subtlety for the damage boost, raising the buff cap from 12 to 22. The number of absorbed Void Rifts needed to cap out the buff remains the same. When using her special Burst, Skirk instead gains a 70% ATK Bonus for the duration of her Seven-Phase Flash state.

This is a hefty damage increase for Skirk’s quickswap playstyle and a solid increase to her on-field playstyle (as long as she uses her special Burst).

Constellation 3

Constellation 3 | Serendipitous Sin

Constellation Description

Increases the Level of Havoc: Ruin by 3.
Maximum upgrade level is 15.

Talent levels for Skirk’s Burst. In addition to being a solid Constellation for her quickswap playstyle, it also shifts enough of her damage to her Burst to make split rotations better even in on-field teams.

Constellation 4

Constellation 4 | Fractured Flow

Constellation Description

Enhances the effects of the Passive Talent Return to Oblivion: Each Death’s Crossing stack also increases Skirk’s ATK by 10%/20%/40%.

You must first unlock the Passive Talent Return to Oblivion.

Up to 40% ATK to go with Skirk’s Ascension 4 multiplier. Although Freeze teams usually are ATK-starved, this Constellation is still far weaker than her others and should only be a stepping stone toward her C5 or C6.

Constellation 5

Constellation 5 | End of Wishes

Constellation Description

Increases the Level of Havoc: Warp by 3.
Maximum upgrade level is 15.

Talent levels for Skirk’s Skill. While Skirk’s C3 increased her Burst damage enough relative to her Skill to make split rotations preferred in her on-field teams, her C5 tips the scales to make her regular non-split on-field rotations better again.

Constellation 6

Constellation 6 | To the Source

Constellation Description

Each Void Rift Skirk absorbs via the effects of the Passive Talent Reason Beyond Reason will grant her 1 Havoc: Sever stack. She can consume such stacks to initiate coordinated attacks and decrease the DMG she takes while in Seven-Phase Flash mode. These stacks last for 15s, and each stack’s duration is counted independently (max 3 stacks).
You must first unlock the Passive Talent “Reason Beyond Reason.”

Havoc: Sever
· When Skirk uses the Elemental Burst Havoc: Ruin, she will consume all Havoc: Sever stacks to initiate a coordinated attack in which each Havoc: Sever stack will deal 750% of Skirk’s ATK as Cryo DMG. This DMG is considered Elemental Burst DMG.
· When she uses Normal Attacks while in Seven-Phase Flash mode, 1 Havoc: Sever stack will be consumed when her third or fifth sequenced attacks hit an opponent to launch 3 coordinated attacks. Each coordinated attack deals 180% of Skirk’s ATK as Cryo DMG. This damage is considered Normal Attack DMG.
· When Skirk takes DMG while in Seven-Phase Flash mode, 1 Havoc: Sever stack will be consumed to decrease this DMG instance by 80% and attack nearby opponents 3 times, with each attack dealing 180% of Skirk’s ATK as Cryo DMG. This DMG is considered Charged Attack DMG.

A strong capstone Constellation. Upon absorbing Void Rifts, Skirk gains special “Sever” stacks, which provide different effects depending on whether she is in her Seven-Phase Flash state or not. Each stack has an independent 15s duration, and she can have at most three stacks at a time.

Outside of her Seven-Phase Flash state, Skirk can consume C6 stacks by casting her regular Burst. This will consume all stacks to trigger up to three simultaneous coordinated attacks, significantly increasing her Burst damage. Since the damage is considered Burst damage, it benefits from 4pc Galleries.

In her Seven-Phase Flash state, Skirk will instead consume one stack at a time either through her third and fifth Normal Attacks or when she is hit by an enemy. Upon consuming a stack, she triggers three coordinated attacks. If the coordinated attack is triggered by her Normal Attacks, it’s considered Normal Attack damage (and benefits from 4pc Galleries). If it’s triggered by being hit, it’s considered Charged Attack damage (and neither benefits from nor deactivates 4pc Galleries).

As a result, Skirk’s C6 is a solid damage boost to both her on-field and quickswap playstyles.

C1 vs R1

Obtaining R1 Azurelight is a larger DPS increase than obtaining Skirk’s C1 in nearly all circumstances. Skirk’s C1 should not be considered unless you already have Haran Geppaku Futsu, Primordial Jadecutter, Mistsplitter Reforged, or Beyond the Chrysalis, or if you intend to get her C2.

Combos

Combo Notation

N = Normal Attack
C = Charged Attack
A = Aimed Shot
P = Plunging Attack
hP = High Plunge
lP = Low Plunge

E = Elemental Skill
tE = Tap Skill
hE = Hold Skill

Q = Elemental Burst

D = dash (cancel)
J = jump (cancel)
W = walk (cancel)

> = switch character
( ) = these actions are optional; please refer to the notes below
[ ] = repeat these actions the specified number of times

Skirk’s combos are very important to maximize her damage output. This is a complex part of Skirk’s kit, with a high skill ceiling for optimal combos. However, there are many combos with differing levels of damage output and execution difficulty. Combos can be reliant on factors such as click speed, timing, and even the game’s FPS. Compared to inconsistently and poorly executed combos, consistently executed combos can result in a damage increase comparable to gains from obtaining her C1 or even Azurelight.

Attack Strings

One of the biggest limitations to Skirk’s DPS is the amount of time her attack strings take to perform. Skirk’s N4 is relatively slow for the damage it provides, and Skirk’s N5 is also quite slow, though it has high scaling to offset the time taken. You should make sure to use Skirk’s special Elemental Burst as well as at least one Charged Attack to maintain Serpent’s Subtlety. There are three main attack strings to note.

N5(D/C/CD/Q)	N5 is Skirk’s complete Normal Attack string. Poor timing or slower click speed leads to slower execution of the string and lower DPS. Her final Normal Attack animation can be canceled as soon as the hit lands. When timed correctly, this animation cancel allows Skirk to begin her next attack string sooner. Skirk can dash or use her special Elemental Burst to cancel the animation. A dash is the fastest, but a Charged Attack or using Skirk’s special Elemental Burst allow her to absorb Void Rifts.
N2(D/C/CD/Q)	N2 is a truncated Normal Attack string consisting of her first 2 Normal Attacks. Her second Normal Attack animation can be canceled as soon as the hit connects. However, make sure to cancel the string after the second hit lands—it is better to be a little slow than too fast. Executing the dash cancel too fast cancels the second Normal Attack before it can deal damage. N2D A dash cancel (N2D) is Skirk’s most efficient animation cancel and highest-DPS option, but it faces issues with dash cooldowns and Stamina. It is impossible to dash more than twice in a short period of time. As such, Skirk cannot chain more than 2[N2D] together as a third dash cannot be executed. Instead, after the second N2D, you should use a different cancel (e.g. N2Q or N2C) or a different Normal Attack string (e.g. N5 or N3W). If you can input a third dash, the execution is too slow for N2D to be a DPS increase over N5.
N3W	N3W consists of 3 Normal Attacks and input of forward movement during the third Normal Attack. This string is commonly used after 2[N2D] as the highest DPS way of waiting out the dash cooldown. Make sure to release the forward input before executing another attack, as your string is only reset after the forward input finishes. You should release the forward walking input just as Skirk is about to visually land on the ground after her third Normal Attack.

Full Combos

There are more difficult and higher DPS Skirk combos than those listed here. However, they are beyond the scope of this Quick Guide.

Example combos are listed from weakest to strongest. Click the combo to view a video demonstration.

Note on C2+ Combos

Skirk’s C2 provides her with more Serpent’s Subtlety and incentivizes using her Burst earlier in the rotation. This reduces her reliance on Void Rifts and slightly changes some of her combos.

In a situation where you use Skirk’s Elemental Burst before her Tap Skill (Q tE) in the combos below, replace the Burst with a Charged Attack.

hE Q	Skirk’s quickswap playstyle combo. Use this when Skirk is not the on-field DPS of the team.
tE N5Q N5D N5(C/CD) N5	This is a very basic Skirk combo which can be performed properly with little to no practice. Execute Skirk’s full N5 attack string a total of 4 times, and use her special Elemental Burst and Charged Attack at the end of the first and third string respectively to absorb Void Rifts.
tE N5D N2Q N5D N5(C/CD) N5 C2+: tE N2Q N5D N5C N5D N5	This is Skirk’s recommended baseline combo. Compared to the easiest combo above, this one adds in two extra hits before canceling the attack string with her special Burst. This results in a decent damage increase.
tE N5D N2Q 2[N5D] N2(C/CD) N5 C2+: tE N2Q 2[N5D] N2C N5D N5	This combo is the same as the one above, but another N2 combo is added near the end. It can be performed reliably with some practice. This combo is reliant on mouse click speed or good timing. Depending on these factors, executing this combo may be more difficult than the two below while also yielding worse damage.
tE 2[N2D] N2Q 2[2[N2D] N3W] N2D N2C N2D N3	Compared to the combo below, this combo is a little easier, less reliant on mouse click speed, and only slightly weaker. However, you must learn Skirk’s walk cancels to properly execute it. With slower execution, you can opt to skip the N2D before the N2C, at the cost of some damage. If you prefer, you can execute the final N2D N2C N2D N3 instead as N2C 2[N2D] N3.
tE 2[N2D] N2Q 2[N2D] N5D N2D N2C 2[N2D] N5 C2+: tE N2Q 2[N2D] N5D N2D N2C 2[N2D] N5D N2C N2	This combo aims to perform as many N2 strings as possible without utilizing walk cancels. With slower execution, you can opt to skip the N2D before the N2C, at the cost of some damage. This combo alternates between using her Burst and Charged Attack and finishing the full attack string when Skirk’s dash is on cooldown. This combo is difficult and only recommended if you wish to play Skirk at a relatively highly optimized level.

Artifacts

Artifact Stats

Stat Priority: CRIT > ATK% >>> Flat ATK

A Cryo DMG Bonus Goblet usually outperforms an ATK% Goblet. However, a high amount of DMG Bonus from equipment and teammates can allow an ATK% Goblet to outperform. For example, a combination of Haran Geppaku Futsu or Calamity of Eshu, 4pc Galleries, Furina’s DMG Bonus, and a Natlan teammate holding 4pc Scroll.

Skirk does not have ER requirements since she does not have traditional Energy.

Artifact Sets

Hover over artifact images for more information.

Weapons

If a weapon is not listed, it is generally not worth considering over R5 Finale of the Deep.

Hover over weapon images for more information.

Teams

Rotation Notation

N = Normal Attack
C = Charged Attack
A = Aimed Shot
P = Plunging Attack

E = Elemental Skill
tE = Tap Skill
hE = Hold Skill

Q = Elemental Burst

D = dash (cancel)
J = jump (cancel)
W = walk (cancel)

> = switch character
( ) = these actions are optional; please refer to the notes below
[ ] = repeat these actions the specified number of times

Teambuilding

**Skirk — Furina / Hydro Applier — Escoffier / Cryo — Vodyanitsa / Cryo / Hydro**

The vast majority of Skirk’s kit is locked to teams with only Hydro and Cryo characters, which leaves Freeze as her strongest team composition by far. Furina, Escoffier, and Vodyanitsa are her best teammate options.

Skirk should run a healer if she is using Finale of the Deep or a shielder if she has Calamity of Eshu or Summit Shaper equipped in order to make full use of the weapons’ passives.

On-field Skirk’s theoretical minimum rotation length is 20.5s (12.5s Skill duration and an 8s Skill cooldown). However, teams that have a TTDS holder such as Citlali, Charlotte, or Vodyanitsa should aim for 21s rotations as TTDS’s cooldown is effectively 21s, even though its text says 20s.

Teammate Artifact Sets

Skirk’s teammates generally focus on buffing her with 4pc Noblesse Oblige (NO), 4pc Scroll of Hero of Cinder City (Scroll), or 4pc Tenacity of the Millileth (TotM), even when they are off-field DPS characters.

The dropdown below contains a table of possible support 4pc artifact sets for every notable teammate listed below in alphabetical order. It also notes who can hold TTDS. Most characters can hold 4pc NO or 4pc Scroll. If Citlali or Mualani is on the team, other characters should never hold 4pc Scroll. Characters that can effectively hold 4pc TotM should prioritize it over other support sets. Other exceptions are mentioned in the character’s description.

Teammate 4pc Artifact Sets

★ = Prioritize on this character
⬤ = Usable
🛆 = Limited or inconsistent uptime
⤫ = Not usable

Teammate	Scroll	NO	TotM	TTDS
Aino	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Barbara	⬤	🛆	⤫	⬤
Candace	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Charlotte	⬤	⬤	🛆	⬤
Chongyun	⬤	⬤	🛆	⤫
Citlali	★	🛆	🛆	⬤
Columbina	⬤	🛆	⬤	⬤
Dahlia	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Diona	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Escoffier	⬤	⬤	⬤	⤫
Furina	⬤	🛆	⬤	⤫
Kaeya	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Teammate	Scroll	NO	TotM	TTDS
Kokomi	⬤	🛆	⬤	⬤
Layla	⬤	⬤	⬤	⤫
Mika	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Mona	⬤	⬤	🛆	⬤
Mualani	★	⤫	⤫	⬤
Qiqi	⬤	⬤	⬤	⤫
Rosaria	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Shenhe	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Sigewinne	⬤	⤫	⬤	⤫
Vodyanitsa	⬤	🛆	★	⬤
Xingqiu	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Yelan	⬤	⬤	⤫	⤫
Teammate	Scroll	NO	TotM	TTDS

Notable Teammates

These three units are vital to Skirk’s best teams.

Hydro Appliers

Buffers

Other Supports

Dual Carries

Hydro Appliers

In order to generate Void Rifts in her team, Skirk needs to consistently trigger Freeze (or other non-Melt Cryo-related reactions) throughout the rotation. As such, an off-field Hydro unit is required. Furina is usually by far the best option, but other characters (including Vodyanitsa) can work.

Applying too much Hydro, such as using both Xingqiu and Yelan, can reduce Cryo Resonance uptime against unfreezable enemies, effectively losing the 15% CRIT Rate buff.

Buffers

These characters provide Skirk with buffs via their kit and gear.

Other Supports

These characters generally perform worse than the options above but still range from good to usable.

Dual Carries

When played as a quickswap DPS, Skirk generally pairs with a second DPS that deals damage from on-field while Skirk’s Burst and Skill are on cooldown. Note that these teams are even more Escoffier-reliant than Skirk’s regular on-field teams and generally perform worse than focusing on a single carry instead.

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.

**Skirk — Furina — Escoffier — Vodyanitsa**

Skirk’s standard premium team. Furina, Escoffier, and Vodyanitsa’s combined buffs maximize Skirk’s personal damage. While it is possible to alternate Escoffier’s and Vodyanitsa’s Bursts, this lowers Skirk’s damage output since rotations without Escoffier’s Burst have reduced Fanfare generation. Vodyanitsa prefers holding TTDS, but Hymn of the Maelstrom is DPS-neutral or a slight DPS loss in this team.

This team has a slightly different rotation depending on your ping. At lower ping, you need to wait out Skirk’s 8s Skill cooldown and TTDS’s effective 21s cooldown.

Sample Rotation (<250ms ping)
Escoffier E N1¹ > Furina ED Q > Escoffier Q > Vodyanitsa E > Skirk tE combo

Sample Rotation (>250ms ping)
Furina ED Q > Escoffier EQ > Vodyanitsa E > Skirk tE combo

¹You may collect your own particles on Escoffier or choose to funnel to Furina, depending on your ER requirements and ping.

**Skirk — Furina — Escoffier — Citlali / Mualani**

A team variant that gets the full buff from 4pc Scroll along with TTDS. Citlali never uses her Burst and focuses on building EM for shield strength (and buff strength at C1+). The rotation where Citlali gives TTDS to Skirk can be finicky, but Citlali can still trigger 4pc Scroll against Frozen enemies as long as there is an underlying Hydro aura. Mualani does not provide a shield but she drastically reduces Furina’s ER requirements in exchange.

Sample Rotation (Citlali, TTDS to Escoffier)
Furina ED Q > Citlali E N1 > Escoffier EQ > Skirk tE combo

Sample Rotation (Citlali, TTDS to Skirk)
Furina Q > Escoffier EQ > Furina E > Citlali (wait)¹ E > Skirk tE combo

¹Wait for Furina’s Salon Members to hit the enemy so that Citlali can trigger 4pc Scroll with her Elemental Skill.

Sample Rotation (Mualani)
Furina ED Q > Escoffier EQ > Mualani E N1 E > Skirk tE combo > Mualani E N1 E¹

¹Exiting Mualani’s Nightsoul state allows the cooldown to start ticking slightly earlier than simply switching off her.

**Skirk — Furina — Escoffier — Mona / Shenhe / Yelan**

A team variant without Vodyanitsa. All variants are straightforward and function similarly. Mona performs especially well against Freezable enemies as Freeze extends the duration of her Omen. Shenhe uses her Hold Skill in order to provide an additional 15% Normal DMG Bonus to Skirk, as well as two extra Icy Quills. Yelan provides her own personal damage along with a ramping DMG% buff for Skirk.

Sample Rotation (Mona)
(Skirk tE N1)¹ > Furina ED Q > Escoffier EQ > Mona EQ² > Skirk tE combo

Sample Rotation (Shenhe)
(Skirk tE N1)¹ > Furina ED Q > Escoffier EQ > Shenhe hEQ > Skirk tE combo

Sample Rotation (Yelan)
(Skirk tE N1)¹ > Furina ED Q > Escoffier EQ > Yelan EQ > Skirk tE combo

¹First rotation only, and only if Skirk needs extra Void Rift generation.
²Skip Mona’s Skill if the team can meet their ER requirements without it.

**Skirk — Furina — Charlotte — Vodyanitsa**

A team variant without Escoffier. Charlotte can hold Favonius Codex while Vodyanitsa holds TTDS. This lets Charlotte cast her Elemental Burst every rotation, though her ER requirements are still high.

Sample Rotation
Furina ED Q > Charlotte E N1 Q > Vodyanitsa E > Skirk tE combo

**Skirk — Vodyanitsa — Escoffier — Mona**

Skirk’s strongest team without Furina. Mona should hold TTDS to buff Skirk, which opens up weapon options for Vodyanitsa. In this team, TTDS and Prototype Amber perform roughly the same, while Hymn of the Maelstrom is DPS-positive.

Sample Rotation (Vodyanitsa and Mona TTDS)
Vodyanitsa E > Escoffier E N1 > Mona E Q > Skirk tE combo > (Skirk N4 / Vodyanitsa Q)¹

Sample Rotation (Only Mona TTDS)
Vodyanitsa (Q)² E > Escoffier (Q)² E N1 > Mona E Q > Skirk tE combo (N4)²

¹There is downtime to fill for TTDS’s and Skirk’s Skill cooldown. Skirk can use Physical Normal Attacks with the exact number needed depending on execution speed and ping; or, Vodyanitsa can use her Burst if available.
²Skip the first rotation. Alternate between Vodyanitsa’s and Escoffier’s Bursts every rotation; do not perform both in the same rotation. If neither Burst is available, Skirk can perform a Physical N4 after her combo.

**Skirk — Xingqiu — Rosaria — Vodyanitsa**

A team variant without Furina or Escoffier. Xingqiu provides Hydro Resonance and some personal damage, while Rosaria’s CRIT Rate buff pairs nicely with Vodyanitsa’s Additive Base DMG Bonus.

Sample Rotation
Xingqiu ED Q N1 > Rosaria E Q N1 > Vodyanitsa E > Skirk tE combo

**Skirk — Vodyanitsa — Rosaria — Dahlia**

Another team variant without Furina or Escoffier. Dahlia provides an Attack SPD buff, Hydro Resonance, and a shield, which also enables Eshu’s passive.

Sample Rotation
Dahlia E > Rosaria EQ > Dahlia (E)¹Q > Vodyanitsa E > Skirk tE combo

¹If Dahlia holds and triggers Sacrificial Sword.

**Skirk — C6 Candace — Escoffier — Dahlia**

A team without Furina or Vodyanitsa. Dahlia and Candace’s respective buffs scale with their HP, so Hydro Resonance is appreciated. Additionally, Candace’s Hydro application is slow enough not to interfere much with Cryo Resonance uptime. This team does not function if Candace is not C6, as pre-C6 Candace does not provide off-field Hydro application.

Sample Rotation
Candace E N2 > Escoffier E (Q / N2)¹ > Dahlia E Q > Candace E Q > Skirk tE combo

¹Burst on Escoffier if it is available, otherwise do an N2.

**Skirk — Xingqiu — Escoffier — Charlottel**

Another team variant without Furina or Vodyanitsa. Xingqiu provides the necessary Hydro application for the team to function, while Charlotte can hold TTDS.

If Escoffier does not hold Symphonist of Scents, she does not need to use her Burst. Instead, Charlotte can use her Burst every rotation while holding 4pc NO, but this results in higher ER requirements for her.

Sample Rotation (Charlotte Burst Every Rotation)
Xingqiu ED Q N1 > Escoffier E N1 > Charlotte E N1 Q N1 > Skirk tE combo

Sample Rotation (Charlotte Burst Every Other)
Xingqiu ED Q N1 > Escoffier E N1 (Q N1)¹ > Charlotte E N1 (Q N1)¹ > Skirk tE combo

¹Alternate between Escoffier and Charlotte’s Bursts every rotation.

**Skirk — Furina — Chongyun — Charlotte**

A decent team variant without Escoffier or Vodyanitsa. Chongyun batteries Charlotte, allowing her to hold TTDS and 4pc NO with reasonable ER requirements. He also provides partial uptime on his 10% Cryo RES Shred to slightly boost damage.

Sample Rotation (Chongyun on Favonius)
Chongyun Q > Furina ED Q > Chongyun E > Charlotte E N1 Q > Skirk tE combo

Sample Rotation (Chongyun on Other Weapon)
Furina ED Q > Chongyun Q E > Charlotte E N1 Q > Skirk tE combo

A team variant with Yelan. Double Hydro increases Yelan’s personal damage at the cost of Cryo Resonance if the enemy can be Frozen. Rosaria has manageable ER requirements and provides a CRIT Rate buff to Skirk. This team does not have a healer and may perform poorly if Skirk holds Finale of the Deep. Rosaria should be replaced with Layla if Skirk holds Calamity of Eshu or Summit Shaper.

Sample Rotation
Rosaria E¹ > Xingqiu ED Q N1 > Yelan EQ N1 > Rosaria EQ > Skirk tE combo

¹First rotation only.

A different team variant with Yelan. This one sacrifices Hydro Resonance in exchange for a healer to clear Skirk’s Bond of Life from Finale of the Deep. Rosaria funnels particles to Yelan (preferably with Favonius Lance), bringing Yelan’s ER requirements down to a reasonable level.

Sample Rotation (Beidou)
Rosaria E > Yelan EQ > Rosaria Q > Charlotte E N1 Q > Skirk tE combo

Limited Roster Alternatives

These teams are meant for newer players whose limited roster prevents them from using the teams above; as such, the teams below result in lower damage output.

**Skirk — Xingqiu — Chongyun — Charlotte**

Sample Rotation
Xingqiu ED Q N1 > Chongyun Q E > Charlotte E N1 Q¹ N1 > Skirk tE combo

¹Catch both Chongyun and Charlotte’s Elemental Skill particles after Charlotte’s Burst to lower her ER requirements.

Sample Rotation
Chongyun E > Aino EQ > Chongyun Q > Layla Q N1 E > Skirk tE combo

Sample Rotation
Xingqiu ED Q N1 > Rosaria EQ N1 > Layla Q N1 E > Skirk tE combo

Sample Rotation
Xingqiu ED Q N1 > Layla Q N1 E > Rosaria EQ N1 > Skirk tE combo

Credits

7.1 Updater: puppy7777
7.1 Contributors: irokei, caxia5
5.7 Release Contributors: caramielle., sew, lesterberne, PJelJr, plumetra, lostguide

Team images made with the KQM portrait generator.

Vodyanitsa	Vodyanitsa is one of Skirk’s best teammates, comparable to both Furina and Escoffier in terms of utility. Vodyanitsa’s solo Hydro application can generate sufficient Void Rifts for Skirk, and she provides RES Shred and Additive Base DMG Bonus that heavily buff Skirk’s damage. Finally, she can hold Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers (TTDS), allowing her to further buff Skirk. In teams where Vodyanitsa can hold TTDS for Skirk, opting instead for Hymn of the Maelstrom is not a significant upgrade.
Odette	Odette’s potential use in Skirk’s standard teams is limited as she cannot trigger Stellar Glimmer Reactions (except against enemies with an innate Elemental aura or shield). As such, she is generally not recommended as a teammate.
Cryo Traveler	Similarly to Odette, the Traveler’s reliance on Stellar makes them a suboptimal teammate to on-field Skirk, who would usually prefer a buffer instead.
4★ New Bough	New Bough is a 4-star banner-exclusive Sword released in Version 7.1. While Skirk cannot make use of the passive’s EM or Stellar-Glimmer buff in her standard teams, she does make use of its ATK% buff and maintain full stacks after 3s. However, this weapon at any refinement is strictly worse than R5 Finale of the Deep, assuming you can clear Finale’s Bond of Life. If your team does not have a sufficiently strong healer, New Bough outperforms Finale of the Deep.
5★ Beyond the Chrysalis (Chrysalis)	Chrysalis is among one of Skirk’s best weapon options after Azurelight, as its passive provides Skirk with an extra 56% CRIT DMG on top of the Sword’s base stats. However, Azurelight is still significantly better, so it is recommended not to pull this weapon specifically for Skirk.
5★ Whitelake Frostfeather, Exaiphanes Blade	Skirk cannot make use of Whitelake Frostfeather’s passive. Similarly, Exaiphanes Blade’s passive only works on Traveler. As such, these weapons perform similarly to other 5-star CRIT Swords: usually slightly better than Finale of the Deep, Skirk’s overall best 4-star option. It is not recommended to pull Whitelake Frostfeather for Skirk, and Traveler makes better use of Exaiphanes Blade than Skirk does.
4★ Emberwell	Emberwell is a craftable Sword released in Version 7.0. It performs strictly worse than Finale of the Deep due to its EM secondary stat.
4★ Heretic’s Molten Blade	Heretic’s Molten Blade is a Battle Pass–exclusive Sword released in Version 7.0. At R1 it is slightly worse than R5 Finale of the Deep, assuming you can clear Finale’s Bond of Life. R1 Heretic’s Molten Blade outperforms Finale of the Deep if the team does not have a sufficiently strong healer. R5 Heretic’s Molten Blade is a minor increase over R5 Finale of the Deep and performs comparably to 5-star CRIT stat sticks such as Absolution and Light of Foliar Incision.

Sands	Goblet	Circlet
ATK%	Cryo DMG Bonus ≥ ATK%	CRIT > ATK%

4pc Finale of the Deep Galleries (Galleries)	4pc Galleries is Skirk’s signature artifact set. It performs on par with 4pc Marechaussee Hunter but is not reliant on Furina to maintain the 4pc set bonus. This artifact set is the generally recommended set for Skirk, as it performs well in all playstyles and doesn’t risk overcapping even with a CRIT Rate weapon.
4pc Marechaussee Hunter (MH)	Skirk’s best artifact set for her on-field playstyle in teams with Furina. However, this set ties her to Furina and is difficult to use with a CRIT Rate weapon without overcapping. Notably, 4pc Galleries outperforms 4pc MH if Skirk holds Azurelight. This artifact set is subpar for split rotation or quickswap Skirk. 4pc MH can only stack on field, making it difficult to get all 3 CRIT Rate buffs in the short window of time before Skirk’s Elemental Burst lands.
4pc Blizzard Strayer (BS)	Despite Blizzard Strayer slightly outperforming both Marechaussee and Galleries on paper, it’s unreliable due to its dependence on freezable enemies. This leaves its performance at the whim of HoYo’s endgame lineup choices, making it far less futureproof than the above options. Still, it’s a strong choice for anyone who has a set lying around and is confident they won’t face unfreezable enemies.
Placeholder Options	4pc Gladiator’s Finale or 2pc Mixed Sets (Marechaussee Hunter, Cryo DMG Bonus, ATK%) Placeholder options while farming a 4pc Marechaussee or Galleries set for Skirk. Use whichever pieces have better stats. Note that 4pc Gladiator’s Finale performs poorly for quickswap Skirk

5★ Azurelight	Azurelight is Skirk’s signature weapon and offers high Base ATK, a CRIT Rate secondary stat, and an additional 48% ATK and 40% CRIT DMG from its passive, which Skirk has no issue maintaining. While the gap between it and her other alternatives aren’t as large as with some recent characters, it still outperforms her next closest alternatives by a sizable margin.
5★ Haran Geppaku Futsu (Haran), Primordial Jade Cutter (PJC), Beyond the Chrysalis, Mistsplitter Reforged	Skirk’s best non-signature options. She makes good use of all of their passives, which puts them a sizable step up from other 5-star CRIT stat sticks. Haran’s passive focuses on Normal Attack damage and as such does not perform as well as the other 3 Swords for quickswap Skirk. Haran and PJC’s high CRIT Rate secondary stat make it difficult to not overcap with 4pc Marechaussee Hunter.
4★ Calamity of Eshu (Eshu)	Eshu is Skirk’s best 4-star Sword for her on-field playstyle if a shield can be maintained. In such scenarios, it performs nearly as well as the 5-star options above and better than the 5-star options below. However, its passive is completely focused on Normal and Charged Attacks, so it is significantly worse than Finale of the Deep for quickswap Skirk. Note that Eshu was only obtainable during Version 5.2’s flagship event.
Other 5★ CRIT Swords	There are two general kinds of 5-star CRIT Swords: those with passives Skirk can use and those with passives Skirk cannot use. Useful Passives Uraku Misugiri, Light of Foliar Incision, Absolution These Swords perform generally better than R5 Finale of the Deep, especially if Skirk holds 4pc Galleries. Useless Passives Exaiphanes Blade, Athame Artis, Splendor of Tranquil Waters, Whitelake Frostfeather, Lightbearing Moonshard These weapons perform similarly to R5 Finale of the Deep. Whether CRIT Swords with useless passives are better than R5 Finale of the Deep depends heavily on the team and gearing. In cases where the team offers a lot of ATK buffs (such as with TTDS), they may outperform but with marginal difference.
5★ Summit Shaper, 4★ The Black Sword, 4★ Heretic’s Molten Blade (Heretic’s)	These Swords narrowly outperform R5 Finale of the Deep, depending on the situation. Without a shield, Summit Shaper is practically equivalent to R5 Finale of the Deep. Heretic’s is generally slightly better for Skirk than The Black Sword, but both require around R3 to surpass R5 Finale of the Deep. At their strongest (Summit Shaper with a shield, Heretic’s or The Black Sword at R5), they perform slightly better than 5-star CRIT stat sticks with unusable passives.
4★ Finale of the Deep	Finale of the Deep is Skirk’s best freely accessible 4-star Sword by a large margin, even without sufficient healing. The requirement for a healer is usually mitigated by the fact that Skirk’s most common teammates, Furina, Escoffier, and Vodyanitsa, require a healer or are healers. Refinements are relatively important, with R5 providing a notable increase in damage (~7%) compared to R1.
4★ Moonweaver’s Dawn	Moonweaver’s Dawn is Skirk’s best 4-star Sword for her quickswap playstyle. A free copy can be obtained through the Nod-Krai World Quest “Echoes of an Unfinished Past”, although further refinements can only be obtained when it is rate-up on a weapon banner. Since its passive only buffs Elemental Burst damage, it is not recommended for on-field Skirk.
4★ New Bough	Without Stellar Glimmer, New Bough at any refinement is strictly worse than R5 Finale of the Deep. However, if Skirk is unable to clear her Bond of Life (e.g. from lack of a healer), New Bough outperforms Finale of the Deep at any refinement. As previously implied, refining New Bough does not provide as significant of a damage increase as refining Skirk’s other 4-star options, and the overall increase from R1 to R5 is about 3%.

Escoffier	Escoffier offers a massive 55% Cryo and Hydro RES Shred, heals to keep the team alive and stack Furina’s Fanfare, and deals good personal damage. The majority of her damage also comes from her Skill, which Skirk’s Utility Passive buffs. Escoffier can hold 4pc TotM if no other holder is on the team. Otherwise, she generally holds 4pc Scroll or 4pc NO.
Vodyanitsa	Vodyanitsa performs on par with Escoffier. She provides Cryo and Hydro RES Shred and two separate sets of Additive Base DMG Bonus scaling with her Max HP, boosting the damage of Skirk and off-field characters. Her RES Shred is tied to her Elemental Skill’s Talent level, which means she actually provides up to 31.5% RES Shred (at Talent Level 11 total before her C3) when factoring in Skirk’s Utility Passive. Vodyanitsa holds 4pc TotM to both increase her HP and provide 20% ATK to Skirk. As a Catalyst user, she can hold TTDS. Vodyanitsa can function as a solo Hydro but prefers a Hydro teammate. Double Hydro enables Hydro Resonance and decreases the reliance on Vodyanitsa to generate Void Rifts, which lets her go right before Skirk in the rotation. This allows her to pass TTDS’s buff as well as all 25 instances of her on-field Additive Base DMG Bonus to Skirk without other units consuming them.
Furina	Furina provides plenty of DMG Bonus, can hold 4pc TotM to further buff Skirk, and deals off-field damage. In teams with Vodyanitsa, Furina ends up holding 4pc Scroll or 4pc Golden Troupe. Much like Escoffier, Furina’s damage also comes from her Skill and thus benefits from Skirk’s Utility Passive. The only caveat is that Furina requires a healer, but this is a non-issue in teams with Escoffier. She also functions with Vodyanitsa as a solo healer, but Vodyanitsa’s lack of teamwide and frontloaded healing can limit Fanfare generation.