Honkai: Star Rail Kafka Build Guide | Kafka Best Light Cones, Relics, and Teams

The most awaited character as well as the third playable Stellaron Hunter, Kafka, finally arrives in Honkai: Star Rail, and many fans are prepared to splurge their Stellar Jades for her. Ever since her appearance, Star Rail players always wanted her to be playable, and their wishes have come true in the second phase of Version 1.2. Kafka’s kit focuses on dealing Damage-over-Time (DoT) to her enemies, as well as following up her allies’ attacks with her own. As a Lightning Nihility character, she’s a strong unit to have on your team, however, she’s at her best when you pair her with another Nihility character like Sampo.

This guide will help you create the best Kafka build in Honkai: Star Rail. That includes a deep dive into her kit and how it works, what Kafka’s best Traces are, her best Relics and Light Cones, and her team compositions, both luxury and free-to-play options. If you’re still uncertain about whether you should pull Kafka or not, then you can find our article that breaks down Kafka’s kit and usability and see if she’s the character that you’re looking for.

Looking for more Honkai: Star Rail guides and articles? You can check them out on KeenGamer with the links below:

1. Should You Pull for Blade or Kafka in Honkai: Star Rail? 
2. Honkai: Star Rail Luka Build Guide | Luka Best Light Cone, Relics, and Teams
3. Honkai: Star Rail Blade Build Guide | Blade Best Light Cone, Relics, and Teams
4. Honkai: Star Rail | Simulated Universe World 7 Guide (Easy F2P Clear)
5. Honkai: Star Rail | Simulated Universe World 6 Guide (Easy F2P Clear)

Kafka Materials

First off, let’s discuss Kafka’s materials that you will need to ascend Kafka to Level 80. Here is the list of all things you need:

• 15x Thief’s Instinct / 15x Usurper’s Scheme / 15x Conqueror’s Will (Antimatter Legion Enemy Drops) 
• 65x Shape Shifter’s Lightning Staff (Stagnant Shadow Drops)
• 308,000 Credits

When looking for the Antimatter Legion series materials, the Antimatter Legion enemies are your best chance of finding them and you can battle these enemies in Herta’s Space Station. Moreover, you will have better consistency in finding the materials when you try battling through Simulated Universe Worlds. Additionally, you can convert low-grade materials into higher grades using the Omni-Synthesizer. Last but not least, you can easily earn a steady stream of Thief’s Instinct through Assignments, netting you 20 pieces each day.

The other main thing you need is the Stagnant Shadow Drop, the Shape Shifter’s Lightning Staff. To unlock this Stagnant Shadow, you can find it in the Stargazer Navalia sub-region within Xianzhou Luofu. To earn the materials, you have to spend 30 Trailblaze Power to challenge them, and you will have better drops as your difficulty progresses. While the enemies you will fight here are basic enemies that you encounter early in the Xianzhou Luofu mainline story, you should remain vigilant against the main enemy since he is a tanky summoner.

As for Kafka’s Traces, you’ll need all three rarities of the Path of Nihility material (Obsidian of Dread, Obsidian of Desolation, and Obsidian of Obsession). You’ll also need to fight the newest Echo of War, Phantylia the Undying as Kafka will need the material, Regret of Infinite Ochema, from the weekly boss. This Echo will unlock after you progress through the Xianzhou Luofu main storyline introduced in Version 1.2.

The Woman Who Lies.

Kafka Skill Overview

Kafka, like other Honkai: Star Rail characters, has many tools to help her combat the enemies. From Basic Attack, Technique, to Ultimate, we will take a look at each of them and see what Kafka is capable of.

Basic Attack: Midnight Tumult

To start, let’s take a look at Kafka’s Basic Attack, Midnight Tumult. This attack deals minor Lightning DMG to a single enemy.

And that’s pretty much it. While not remarkable in any way, Kafka’s true strength lies in her ability to inflict DoT on her enemies through her Talent and Ultimate, which we will soon discuss down the line.

Spider’s Twists of Fate.

Skill: Caressing Moonlight

Moving on, we have one of the best tools in Kafka’s arsenal, her Skill, Caressing Moonlight. Kafka’s Skill deals AoE Lightning damage to enemies (Main target + Adjacent enemies). If the main target has a DoT effect (like Shock, Bleed, or Wind Shear) currently applied, the DoT effect will trigger 1 extra DMG.

This means that Kafka’s Skill is reliant on her Ultimate’s Shock effect or from other characters’ DoT, like Sampo, the new character Luka, or Serval. Nevertheless, Caressing Moonlight opens up so many potentials as the Skill is not limited to just one type of DoT, allowing Kafka to fit in many team lineups.

Still, even without considering that, Kafka’s Skill is a potent source of damage, as it allows her to mow down several enemies at once. However, keep in mind that Kafka only deals major damage to her main target, and only deals splash damage to its adjacent enemies. This AoE damage is similar to how Jing Yuan’s Skill works.

Skill, Caressing Moonlight.

Ultimate: Twilight Trill

Another exciting and arguably her best utility is Kafka’s Ultimate, Twilight Trill. Twilight Trill allows Kafka to deal minor Lightning DMG to all enemies with a high chance of applying Shock status to them. Moreover, if, before Kafka casts her Ultimate, they currently have Shock status inflicted, then the DoT will trigger 1 extra DMG.

Applying DoT is Kafka’s forte and with her Ultimate, this ability solidifies her position as the DoT Queen. Even without other Nihility characters, she’s strong enough to unleash a flurry of DoT on her enemies consistently, as the effect of Twilight Trill lasts for 2 turns, something that works incredibly well with her Skill, Caressing Moonlight.

Ultimate, Twilight Trill.

Talent: Gentle but Cruel

Next, we will discuss an important aspect of Kafka’s kits, her Talent, Gentle but Cruel. After an ally of Kafka’s uses Basic ATK on an enemy target, Kafka immediately launches 1 follow-up attack and deals Lightning DMG equal to 42% of her ATK to that target, with a 100% base chance to inflict Shock equivalent to that applied by her Ultimate to the attacked enemy target for 2 turns. This effect can only be triggered 1 time per turn.

What does this mean? This means that her Talent allows Kafka to trigger a mini-Ultimate towards an enemy that is hit by another character’s Basic Attack, granting an additional DoT source for her Skill, something that you should always use whenever it’s Kafka’s turn.

Talent, Gentle but Cruel.

Technique: Mercy Is Not Forgiveness

And last but not least, we have Kafka’s Technique, Mercy Is Not Forgiveness. This is an offensive Technique in which Kafka strikes down all enemies within a set range. After entering battle, Kafka immediately deals Lightning DMG to all enemies and inflicts Shock status on them.

Whenever possible, you should always initiate a battle by using Kafka’s Technique, as it allows you to have DoT status applied right off the bat. Kafka’s Technique allows your team to gain a precious headstart and more flexibility for other Nihility characters in your team.

Fear Strikes All.

Kafka Traces

Kafka’s Traces focuses on giving her more damage and an additional chance to inflict Shock status on her enemies. Here’s a breakdown of what you’ll get from Kafka’s minor Trace trees:

• 28% ATK Boost (4 + 4 + 6 + 6 + 8)
• 18% Effect Hit Rate Boost (4 + 6 + 8)
• 10% HP Boost (4 + 6)

Next, we will discuss Kafka’s Major Traces. First up is Kafka’s Ascension 2 Trace, Torture. When the Ultimate is used, enemy targets will now receive DMG immediately from all currently applied DoT sources instead of just receiving DMG immediately from the currently applied Shock state. This is the main reason why Kafka’s Ultimate is incredibly potent: It allows her to trigger other DoT simultaneously, dealing massive damage every time she casts her Ultimate.

The second Major Trace for Kafka is Plunder. If an enemy is defeated while Shocked, Kafka additionally regenerates 5 Energy. While this Trace seems insignificant, every source of Energy is valuable for Kafka as she’s a character who needs to use her Ultimate as often as possible.

Lastly, there’s Kafka’s Ascension 6 Trace, Thorns. The base chance for target enemies to get Shocked by Kafka’s Ultimate, Technique, or her Talent-triggered follow-up attack increases by 30%. Simple, yet deadly. This Trace allows Kafka to have a better chance at applying her Shock DoT status toward her enemies, ensuring them to taste the never-ending DoT cycle.

Threads of Control.

Kafka Abilities Priority

1. Twilight Trill (Ultimate)
2. Caressing Moonlight (Skill)
3. Gentle but Cruel (Talent)
4. Midnight Tumult (Basic ATK)

As previously mentioned, Kafka is reliant upon her Ultimate with her Skill in tandem, so both of them should get the highest priorities among all of her tools. However, the priority is skewed toward her Ultimate, as that’s her main source of damage and DoT (Shock) to her enemies. Her Talent comes next because even though its effects are potent, you need to rely on other characters to do Basic ATK, something you might want to manually control to have better consistency with Kafka’s Talent.

And lastly, the reason why Midnight Tumult has the lowest priority is simply that it doesn’t do anything but deal minor Lightning DMG to an enemy, and ideally, you should never use Kafka’s Basic ATK and instead focuses on gathering enough Skill Points for her to use during battles.

Kafka, The Fearless Stellaron Hunter.

Kafka’s Eidolons

Next up, we will list all of Kafka’s Eidolons in Honkai: Star Rail. Eidolons can be acquired by pulling the same character multiple times from the Event Warp. To get Kafka’s unique Eidolons, you need to have multiple copies of her from her Character Event Warp, “Nessun Dorma”.

1. Da Capo: When the Talent triggers a follow-up attack, there is a 100% base chance to increase the DoT received by the target by 30% for 2 turn(s).
2. Fortississimo: While Kafka is on the field, DoT dealt by all allies increases by 25%.
3. Capriccio: Skill Lv. +2 and Basic Attack Lv. +1.
4. Recitativo: When an enemy target takes DMG from the Shock status inflicted by Kafka, Kafka additionally regenerates 2 Energy.
5. Doloroso: Ultimate Lv. +2 and Talent Lv. +2.
6. Leggiero: The Shock inflicted on the enemy target by the Ultimate, the Technique, or the Talent-triggered follow-up attack has a DMG multiplier increase of 156% and lasts 1 turn(s) longer.

The best Eidolon that Kafka has is her E1, as this enables your Kafka to apply a strong debuff on the enemies by increasing the DoT they receive by an additional 30% damage, the perfect complement for her Talent and Ultimate.

The Hunter Arrives.

Kafka’s Best Light Cones in Honkai: Star Rail

Best in Slot: Patience Is All You Need

Kafka’s signature Light Cone, Patience Is All You Need (Path of Nihility), is, without a doubt, her best in slot Light Cone. You can get Patience Is All You Need from the Light Cone Event Warp “Brilliant Fixation”, which is still ongoing in tandem with Kafka’s Character Event Warp. Since this Light Cone is tailor-made for Kafka, the effects it has will surely increase her potency as a Nihility character.

At level 80, Patience Is All You Need nets you 1058 HP, 582 ATK, and 463 DEF to the holder. The main effect is called Spider Web and it has multiple effects. Firstly, it increases DMG dealt by the wearer by 24% while also increasing their SPD by 4.8% after the wearer unleashes an attack, stacking up to 3 times. But the second effect is the important one because it allows the holder to inflict Erode status if the enemy the holder hits has yet to receive that DoT status. Enemies afflicted with Erode are also considered to be Shocked and will receive Lightning DoT at the start of each turn equal to 60% of the wearer’s ATK, lasting for 1 turn(s).

Everything in Patience Is All You Need fits Kafka perfectly as the DoT dealer. The additional DMG and SPD bonuses mean that Kafka can deal damage to her enemies faster, thus allowing her DoT to trigger more quickly. Moreover, with Spider Web’s second effect, Erode, Kafka can target a ‘pure’ enemy and inflicts Shock DoT status on that said enemy, giving her more flexibility to the already flexible kits she has.

Patience Is All You Need Light Cone.

Best Alternatives for Kafka’s Light Cones

What if you only had enough to pull for Kafka? What if you’re unable to risk it on her Light Cone? Does this mean you can’t build the mighty DoT Queen, Kafka? Don’t worry! Kafka has several good backup Light Cone options that she can use.

Before we dive in, it should be worth mentioning that the recommendations will be 4-Star in rarity. This is because most players are more likely to have several 4-Star Nihility Light Cones compared to a 5-Star one. However, if you do have a 5-Star Light Cone such as In the Name of the World, you can try it out before using a lower-tier option, as that Light Cone also works well with Kafka’s kits.

The best replacement Light Cones for Kafka in Honkai: Star Rail are Fermata, Eyes of the Prey, and Good Night and Sleep Well.

Fermata Light Cone.

Light Cones Breakdown

Fermata is super F2P friendly, as you can easily get it by completing Echo of War and from Forgotten Hall’s Store, Light Cone Manifest. This is one of the best Nihility Light Cones, making it a great fit for Kafka. At level 80, it will give your characters 952 HP, 476 ATK, and 330 DEF. Not to mention, the Semibreve Rest skill increases the Break Effect dealt by the wearer by 16% and increases their DMG to enemies afflicted with Shock or Wind Shear by 16%. This also applies to DoT. Kafka will benefit greatly from this Light Cone, as she gains bonus DPS when she hits enemies afflicted with DoT.

Next up is Eyes of the Prey, another brilliant Nihility Light Cone you can get from any of the game’s various Warp Banners, including the current “Brilliant Fixation”. At level 80, this Light Cone will give your characters 952 HP, 476 ATK, and 330 DEF. Alongside those stats, Eyes of the Prey comes with Self-Confidence, which Increases the wearer’s Effect Hit Rate by 20% and increases DoT by 24%. More Effect Hit Rate and DoT bonus are always welcomed for Kafka, as she needs every opportunity she can get to inflict her Shock status on the enemies.

And lastly, we have Good Night and Sleep Well, a Nihility Light Cone that’s great for Kafka thanks to its skill, Toiler. For every debuff the target enemy has, the DMG dealt by the wearer increases by 12%, stacking up to 3 time(s). This effect also applies to DoT. With this Light Cone, Kafka’s damage to an enemy afflicted by DoT statuses will increase substantially, allowing her to mow down those enemies easier.

Eyes of the Prey Light Cone.

Best Relics and Planar Ornaments for Kafka

The most versatile aspect of any Honkai: Star Rail character build is the Relics you equip each character with. Every set has its own unique effects and abilities that can shift a character’s potential. As for Kafka, we want to give her a set that allows her to deal more damage while enhancing her DoT abilities.

With that in mind, the best Relic and Planar Ornament set for Kafka is the 4-Piece Band of Sizzling Thunder and the 2-Piece Space Sealing Station. Starting with our main Relic set, Band of Sizzling Thunder increases the wearer’s Lightning DMG by 10%. Moreover, when the wearer uses their Skill, increases the wearer’s ATK by 20% for 1 turn(s). Lastly, we have Space Sealing Station, the Planar Ornament set, which increases the wearer’s ATK by 12%. Moreover, if the wearer’s SPD exceeds 120, then the wearer will gain an additional 12% ATK bonus.

Band of Sizzling Thunder Relic Set.

There are many things here that fit Kafka’s overall abilities. Starting with the most obvious, this combination gives Kafka substantial damage bonuses (10% Lightning DMG + 12% ATK + 20% ATK after unleashing a Skill), something that Kafka will enjoy as she’s heavily focused on the DPS side of the game.

While the additional stat bonus from Space Sealing Station might not be that enticing to you, that 12% added bonus nets Kafka with a total of 24% ATK bonus, something that she can appreciate as her DoT will greatly increase the more ATK% you can give her.

Space Sealing Station Planar Ornament Set.

Kafka’s Most Important Stats

Here are the main stats we’re recommending Trailblazers should hunt for if they want their Kafka to be the best unit she can be:

• Body: ATK%
• Feet: SPD
• Planar Sphere: Lightning DMG Bonus
• Link Rope: ATK%

Meanwhile, here’s what you want to be on the lookout for in terms of Kafka’s sub-stats:

1. SPD
2. ATK%
3. CRIT Rate
4. CRIT DMG

Destiny Approaches.

Best Teams for Kafka in Honkai: Star Rail

Kafka Luxury DoT Team

Kafka shines best in a team where she gets to trigger as much DoT as she can, during every opportunity she gets. So, her best teammates are those who can enhance her DoT abilities, someone who can lower the enemy’s defenses, and a healer who can keep her safe and secure.

With that in mind, Kafka’s best luxury team includes Luka/Sampo, Silver Wolf, and Luocha.

Luocha is currently the best healer in the game. The major reason why is that his healing is mostly automatic, either from the Cycle of Life Field or from his Skill that triggers whenever an ally falls below 50% HP. Additionally, Luocha is the perfect character to generate Skill Points (SP) and Basic ATK usage, so his presence alone can help Kafka trigger her Talent and Skill far easier.

From there, we have Silver Wolf acting as our Support unit for this team. With Silver Wolf’s talent, all of her attacks have a chance to debuff enemies, making her work well as both a debuffer and SP generator. Another SP generator is always welcome since Kafka needs to utilize her Skill whenever possible, not to mention Silver Wolf’s ability to add an Elemental Weakness to an enemy, giving Kafka leeway during battles.

And lastly, to pair up with Kafka, we have another Nihility character, Sampo. Or Luka, the new character, for that matter. They are here to complement Kafka’s abilities while providing additional DoT to the enemies, enhancing the damage potency of the team. Luka is a Physical character, while Sampo is a Wind character, and both are great to have as DoT DPS characters in this team. To summarize, depending on what type of enemies you will fight, you can juggle between having Sampo or Luka as your fourth character.

The Versatile Healer, Luocha.

Kafka F2P Team

Honkai: Star Rail has many incredible F2P units that synergize well with Kafka, allowing you to field a team immediately after you pull for her. So you don’t need to worry about having to put Kafka on hold while searching for her teammates through gacha and other means. With that in mind, the Kafka F2P Team features Asta, Sampo, and Natasha.

As previously mentioned, even though Kafka alone can excel as the DoT applier, Sampo allows her to truly be the ultimate DoT Queen as of now. Sampo’s Talent allows him to inflict Wind Shear status through his Basic Attacks, Skill, and Ultimate, practically every part of his kit. Additionally, his Skill and Ultimate can deal damage in an AoE, allowing him to gather Wind Shear stacks relatively easily. What does this translate? It means Kafka’s Talent and Skill will have more potency and more chance to trigger thanks to Sampo’s Talent.

And to top it off, we have Asta and Natasha as dedicated Support and Healer for the team. These two characters are simply effective wherever you put them, and that includes Kafka’s F2P Team. Asta’s ability to enhance the ATK% and SPD of the team is crucial, as that allows Kafka to have a turn faster, making her DoT trigger frequently. Moreover, she can also inflict Burn status on her enemies, adding one more DoT source for Kafka. Lastly, Natasha’s healing abilities should not be underestimated, as she can help cleanse a debuff on her allies whenever she uses her Skill.

Sampo, Kafka’s Best Friend.

And that’s how to make the best build for Kafka in Honkai: Star Rail.