What to expect from Xilonen in Genshin Impact 5.1

Genshin InfluenceThe Natlan region is finally available, but this region still holds many secrets for players to discover in future updates. There are tons of new playable characters that are still to appear as the Archon story and other events for this region develop. One such character that fans are already looking forward to is Xilonen, a new 5-star Geo Support character who is expected to appear in Genshin Influences update to version 5.1.

Genshin InfluenceThe update to version 5.1 is scheduled to be released in early October. Although the livestream of the Special Program for this update has not yet been released, there are data mines, leaks from the Genshin Influence Beta playtests and established knowledge from the in-progress Archon story have given players a clear indication of what to expect from the next 5-star character, Xilonen.

Explaining Xilonen’s character leaks in Genshin Impact Update 5.1

Version 5.1 Event Wish Banner

Leaks suggest that Xilonen will be a 5-star character in the first phase Event Wish banners in Genshin Influence5.1 update, along with a reprise of Chiori in the alternate banner. This is a pretty interesting pairing considering Xilonen and Chiori are both 5-star Geo characters who wield a sword. On one hand, the Epitome Invocation weapon banner will stack for players looking to add a new 5-star sword or two to their collection. On the other hand, Geo is generally one of, if not the weakest, of the seven elements in Genshin Influence because his reactions with other elements are extremely limited. However, players should not underestimate Xilonen as just another Geo character without first considering this character’s abilities.

Xilonen’s signature weapon

Speaking of the Epitome Invocations weapon banner, leaks have already revealed the design of Xilonen’s signature weapon. The weapon features musical visualizers running across the entire blade of the sword, fitting with Xilonen’s background as a DJ. As for the stats of this weapon, it is expected to increase the wielder’s defense, critical hit rate, and critical damage, while also dealing increased elemental damage to the rest of the team.

How Xilonen compares to other sub-DPS and support characters in Genshin Impact

So far, players have compared Xilonen to Kazuha, a powerful hybrid Anemo DPS/Support character who can buff nearby teammates’ elemental damage and unleash devastating AoE attacks. Unlike Kazuha, however, Xilonen is at least partially a healer.

How Xilonen compares to other healer characters in Genshin InfluencePlayers may not want to rely solely on Xilonen to handle all of a team’s healing needs without pairing her with a Shielder or another healer character. This is because Xilonen’s healing abilities seem to be tied to her Elemental Burst, and it may not be worth investing in stats like Healing Effectiveness and Energy Recharge, compromising her damage and defense, when there are several other characters that specialize in much more efficient and natural healing.

Because Xilonen can heal nearby teammates and deal increased elemental damage to enemies, this character still naturally lends itself to being a sub-DPS/support character for team compositions suited to Spiral Abyss or the Imaginarium Theater, rather than filling a main DPS or support role. However, for general exploration teams where survivability is just as important as DPS, Xilonen more than deserves to be the star of any team, as long as players play in the right team compositions to make the most of her abilities.

Not to mention, Xilonen naturally synergizes with Natlan’s Night Soul Blessing, so she can be especially useful for exploring Natlan. However, Xilonen’s unique environmental traversal abilities also make her just as useful for exploring any other region in Teyvat beyond Natlan.