Honkai: Star Rail Luka Build Guide | Luka Best Light Cone, Relics and Teams

In Version 1.2 of Honkai: Star Rail, Luka, champion of Belobog’s Fight Club, joined the game alongside Stellaron Hunters Blade and Kafka. Luka is the game’s first Physical Nihility character, with a very interesting and unique role as a unit focused on Bleed. Unlike most Nihility characters, Luka’s kit focuses primarily on single-target damage, while still having a decent amount of support and utility capabilities. When used correctly and in the right circumstances, Luka can become an absolute monster, constantly hitting the enemy for continuous instances of Bleed damage while having high moment-to-moment damage from his Ultimate and Enhanced Basic ATK. 

Here’s how to make the best Luka build in Honkai: Star Rail. This article will include a deep dive into Luka’s kit and how to maximise his potential, what Luka’s best Relics and Light Cones are as well as what premium or free-to-play teams you should try putting him in.

Want more Honkai: Star Rail guides and articles? You can find more here on KeenGamer:

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2. Honkai: Star Rail | Simulated Universe World 4 Guide (Easy F2P Clear)
3. Honkai: Star Rail | Simulated Universe World 6 Guide (Easy F2P Clear)
4. Honkai: Star Rail | The Seven Errors of Cycranes Guide (All Missing Cycrane Locations)
5. Honkai: Star Rail | Luminflux Pyxis Day 3 Puzzle Guide

Luka Materials

Let’s kick this guide off by talking about what you’ll need to bring Luka up to level 80 and fully Ascend him. To get Luka to max Ascension, you’ll need:

• Ancient Part / Ancient Spindle / Ancient Engine (Enemy Drops)
• Broken Teeth of Iron Wolf (Stagnant Shadow Drops)
• 300,000 Credits

The first set of materials Luka asks for is the Ancient series of enemy drops. These drop from defeated Automatons, Svarog’s little legion of robots that scatter the Underground of Belobog. You’ll find large amounts of them in both the Great Mine and Robot Settlement. If you want to farm out these materials, you can also venture into the Simulated Universe and battle the robots there: Worlds 3 and 4 seem to have the largest congregation of Automatons for you to fight. An additional source of these materials is the Omni-Synthesizer where you can trade or exchange lower rarity drops into higher ones. 

As for the other major material Luka needs, you’ll be going up against the Shape of Spike Stagnant Shadow. You’ll find this Shadow in Belobog’s Great Mine where, for 30 Trailblaze Power, you can verse the boss and earn yourself some Broken Teeth of Iron Wolf. The main boss of this Stagnant Shadow is an Automation Direwolf weak to Ice, Lightning and Imaginary DMG. In total, Luka needs around 50 Broken Teeth to reach maximum Ascension. 

If you want to level up Luka’s Traces to their maximum, you’ll also need to get your hands on all three types of the Path of Nihility materials (Obsidian of Dread, Obsidian of Desolation and Obsidian of Obsession). Furthermore, to get past those final few levels, Luka also requires some Regret of Infinite Ochema, the Echo of War material dropped by Phantyllia the Undying. You will unlock this Echo of War by progressing through Act 3 of the Xianzhou Luofu storyline. 

A Moment of Rest

Honkai Star Rail Luka Kit

Basic Attack: Direct Punch

Now we’ll break down Luka’s main kit and how he functions in combat, starting with his Basic ATK, Direct Punch. This attack deals minor Physical DMG to a single target.

At first glance, this seems like quite a poor ability, but the truth is very different. Similar to how the recently released Blade functions, Luka’s Basic ATK has two modes: Direct Punch and the Enhanced version called Sky-Shatter Fist. This attack delivers multiple instances of Luka’s ordinary Basic Attack when cast, finishing up with a Rising Uppercut that not only deals high damage but also triggers any instances of Bleed on the target. How you activate the Enhanced Basic ATK is linked to Luka’s Talent but it is very important to note that, to boost the damage and capabilities of Sky-Shatter Fist, you must invest into the Basic ATK. 

Rise Above It All

Skill: Lacerating Fist

Next up we have one of the more important pieces of Luka’s kit, Lacerating Fist. When cast, Luka’s Skill will deal moderate Physical DMG to a single target, with a 100% base chance to inflict Bleed on that same target. This special version of Bleed lasts for 3 turns and will take 24% of the enemy’s Max HP as Physical DoT at the start of each round.

Luka’s main speciality is damage over time, specifically Bleeding. With his Skill, he has a guaranteed way of inflicting a powerful version of Bleed onto almost any target, setting up the rest of his kit (as well as his allies) for the rest of the fight. Many of Luka’s abilities interact with Bleed in one way or another – for example, Sky-Shatter Fist will instantly trigger a Bleed damage cycle when cast – so having a way to reliably and consistently get Bleed on a target is godsent.

This ability is also what makes Luka work in a wide variety of teams. As the first Physical Nihility character, he has a special interaction with Bleed, in the same way, that Sampo works with Wind Shear or Kafka works with Shock. In the right teams, the unique Bleed from Lacerating Fist can become incredibly strong. It’s something you should keep in mind when creating teams with Luka in them. 

Lacerating Fist

Ultimate: Coup de Grace

Coup de Grace is Luka’s Ultimate and it is his biggest source of raw damage. When cast, Coup de Grace will give Luka 2 stacks of Fighting Will (which is used in his Talent) before striking a single target for massive Physical DMG. This also has a 100% base chance to increase a single enemy target’s DMG received for 3 turns. 

While it doesn’t directly interact with Luka’s role as DoT focused attacker, his Ultimate is an incredible tool in its own right. With incredibly high damage output, Luka can shred through Physical Break at a blistering pace with this Ultimate and the additional utility it provides by increasing the damage taken by a target is invaluable. When used correctly, Coup de Grace can be used to effortlessly clear pawns off the board or tear into a chunky boss target for massive damage. 

Coup de Grace

Talent: Flying Sparks

Next, we come to Luka’s Talent, Flying Sparks, which is another vital part of how his kit works. When Luka uses his Basic ATK or Skill, he receives 1 stack of Fighting Will, a special buff that stacks up to 4 times. When he has 2 or more stacks of Fighting Will, his Basic ATK is enhanced to Sky-Shatter Fist. After his Enhanced Basic ATK strikes a Bleeding target with Rising Uppercut, the Bleed status will immediately deal 1 smaller instance of Bleed damage. Luka will always possess 1 stack of Fighting Will at the start of a battle.

Fighting Will is a resource you’ll want to constantly keep an eye on when using Luka as it dramatically increases his power and strength. Between Luka’s Ultimate, his Basic ATK and his Skill, there should be very few times when you don’t have access to more than 2 stacks of Fighting Will. This means that, for most fights, Luka will operate at full power and be capable of inflicting huge damage with constant Bleed triggers using Sky-Shatter Fist.

As we mentioned before, though, it is worth noting that investing and levelling up Flying Sparks will not increase the damage of Sky-Shatter Fist. Instead, it will only boost the damage of the additional Bleed prock whenever Rising Uppercut hits a Bleeding target.

Enhanced Basic ATK

Technique: Anticipator

Lastly, we have Anticipator, Luka’s Technique. Upon triggering the Technique, Luka immediately attacks the enemy, dealing Physical DMG equal to 50% of his attack to a random enemy with a 100% base chance to inflict Lacerating Fist’s version of Bleed. He’ll also gain one additional stack of Fighting Will, allowing him to begin the battle with Sky-Shatter Fist already active.

The single-target nature of Luka’s Technique does make it less impactful than those of other main attackers like Blade or Serval who can hit multiple targets. However, if you’re going up against a boss, especially one weak to Physical, Anticipator becomes one of the best Techniques in the game as it lets you instantly set up the battlefield to your advantage and get the ball rolling early with Bleed and Fighting Will. Knowing when to use Luka’s Technique is the main thing you need to learn: if you can figure out when to use it properly, it can be a devastating start to any battle. 

Pop Art Punch

Luka Traces

Luka’s Traces are a mixed bag, with some of them increasing his damage potential while others boost his support and utility capabilities. Beginning with Luka’s minor Traces, here are the additional stat boosts and bonuses by picking up all the Traces from Luka’s Trace tree:

• 28% ATK Boost (4 + 4 + 6 + 6 + 8)
• 18% Effect Hit Rate Boost (4 + 6 + 8)
• 12.5% DEF Boost (5 + 7.5)

Luka’s Trace Tree

Luka’s Character Ascension 2 Trace is Kinetic Overload. Whenever Luka uses his Skill, Lacerating Fist, it will immediately dispel 1 buff from the targeted opponent. Considering that Lacerting Fist is already used to set up Luka’s abilities, this just adds another benefit to it: by using Luka’s Skill early, you can strip Mara-Struck of their revival buff and soften them up for guaranteed Bleed and Enhanced Basic ATK damage. This is an excellent utility Trace that makes Luka far more potent in his hybrid role. 

Next, we have his Ascension 4 Trace, Cycle Braking. For every stack of Fighting Will you obtain, Luka will regenerate 3 Energy (so up to 12 extra Energy if you have maximum stacks). Luka’s Ultimate is one of his highest sources of damage, but it’s also his best method of generating Fight Will for his Enhanced Basic ATK. This Trace simply gives you more of a safety net, allowing you to take advantage of his Ultimate at a much more consistent pace.

Finally, we have Luka’s Ascension 6 Trace, Crush Fighting Will. Whenever Luka uses his Enhanced Basic ATK, every hit of Direct Punch has a 50% fixed chance for Luka to deal 1 additional hit. Direct Punch will always deliver three hits before going into a Rising Uppercut, giving three additional chances for three more damage. There honestly isn’t much else to this Trace as it simply makes Luka hit harder which, for a hybrid support DPS, is always going to be a good choice. 

Only the Toughest Opponents

Luka Best Traces and Trace Priority

1. Direct Punch + Sky-Shatter Fist (Basic ATK)
2. Coup de Grace (Ultimate)
3. Flying Sparks (Talent)
4. Lacerating Fist (Skill)

Similar to Blade, the reason to invest so heavily into Luka’s Basic ATK isn’t for Direct Punch, but instead to heighten Sky-Shatter Fist. This attack will be Luka’s main source of damage and the primary way he will be exploiting Bleed using Rising Uppercut, making it the main priority when it comes to investing. Then, in second place, we have Luka’s Ultimate for a similar reason. Coup de Grace is Luka’s highest damage ability and you’ll want to jack up the numbers as high as possible to make sure it really packs a punch every time you use it. The only reason it ranks lower than his Basic ATK is because it requires Energy and won’t always be available. 

The primary reason why Flying Sparks and Lacerating Fist rank lower than either of Luka’s other abilities is because of how they work within his kit. Flying Sparks is Luka’s main means of getting high damage via Sky-Shatter Fist, yet levelling his Talent will only increase the Bleed damage triggered by Rising Uppercut, nothing else. If you want to level up the raw damage of the Enhanced Basic ATK, you need to level up the Basic ATK, not the Talent. Meanwhile, Lacerating Fist is an excellent ability which guarantees Bleed on any target you hit, but that’s all it does: it sets up the rest of Luka’s kit and isn’t the spotlight, meaning that it takes a backseat when it comes to levelling. 

Hungry for More

Luka Eidolons

Here are all six of Luka’s Eidolons in Honkai: Star Rail. To obtain these, you need to obtain multiple copies of Luka from Warping. On his debut, you can attempt to get lucky and get additional Eidolons by summoning on Kafka’s Character Event Warp, “Nessun Dorma”, but following Version 1.2 he’ll join the standard 4-Star pool, giving him a chance of appearing on any banner. 

1. Fighting Endlessly: When Luka attacks, if the target enemy is Bleeding, increases DMG dealt by Luka by 15% for 2 turn(s).
2. The Enemy is Weak, I am Strong: If Luka’s Skill hits an enemy target with Physical Weakness, gain 1 stack of Fighting Will.
3. Born for the Ring: Skill Lv. +2 and Talent Lv. +2.
4. Never Turning Back: For every stack of Fighting Will obtained, increases Luka’s ATK by 5%, stacking up to 4 times.
5. The Spirit of Wildfire: Ultimate Lv. +2 and Basic ATK Lv +1. 
6. A Champion’s Applause: After the Enhanced Basic ATK’s Rising Uppercut hits a Bleeding enemy, the Bleed status will immediately deal DMG 1 time equal to 8% of the original DMG for every hit of Direct Punch already unleashed during the current Enhanced Basic ATK.

Blow Them Away

Luka Best Light Cones in HSR

Best in Slot: Resolution Shines as Pearls of Sweat

Luka’s best in slot Light Cone is his signature LC, Resolution Shines as Pearls of Sweat. This is a 4-Star Nihility Light Cone you can pick up by summoning on the Honkai: Star Rail’s various Warp banners. For Luka, this Light Cone adds yet another arrow to his quiver in terms of what he brings to the team, boosting his own damage potential and setting up enemy targets incredibly well. 

At level 80, Resolution Shines will give the wearer 952 HP, 476 ATK and 330 DEF. Alongside this, they’ll have access to the Light Cone’s unique skill, Glance Back. Whenever the wearer hits an enemy and that enemy isn’t under the Ensnared effect, there is a 60% chance to inflict them for Ensare for 1 turn. When an enemy is Ensnared, their DEF decreases by 16% for the duration of the effect. 

The reason why this effect is so good is that it allows Luka to add DEF lowering to his already stacked arsenal of abilities. With his kit, he can already inflict guaranteed Bleed, high damage and make enemies more susceptible to damage with his Ultimate and this Light Cone just lets him go one step further. Another great thing about this LC for Luka specifically is that it triggers whenever the wearer hits opponents: with Sky-Shatter Fist active, Luka can potentially hit a target up to 7 times in a single turn, giving you 7 opportunities to set up that DEF decrease for your stronger team members to exploit.

While not as flashy or impressive as some 5-Star Light Cones, Resolution Shines as Pearls of Sweat is certainly Luka’s best in the slot and should be equipped onto him if you happen to have it. 

Resolution Shines as Pearls of Sweat

Replacement Luka Light Cones

However, some Trailblazers may not have Sweat Shines and, as such, will have to turn to alternatively Nihility Light Cones to fuel Luka’s battle lust. Fortunately, Luka works pretty well with most of the available Nihility LCs in the game, meaning that you can still create a super stronger Luka build in Honkai Star Rail if you don’t have his BiS. 

While we haven’t recommended any 5-Star Light Cones for Luka, it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try them on him if you happen to have them. If you have In the Name of the World or Patience Is All You Need, definitely try them out on Luka to see if you’re a fan of how they work with his kit and abilities. 5-Star Light Cones are (almost) always stronger at baseline than 4-Star ones, with more impressive and in-depth abilities and effects. 

If you don’t happen to have Resolution Shines Like Pearls of Sweat, your next best options for Luka’s Light Cone are either Before the Tutorial Mission Starts or Good Night and Sleep Well. 

Before the Tutorial Mission Starts

Before the Tutorial Mission starts is a Nihility Light Cone that was available for free through the flagship event in Version 1.1. At level 80, it gives the wearer 952 HP, 476 ATK and 330 DEF along with the skill Quick on the Draw. This increases the wearer’s Effect Hit rate by 20% and allows them to regenerate 4 Energy whenever they attack DEF-reduced enemies. The main draw here is that additional Effect Hit Rate, allowing you to ensure that your Bleed and damage increases always hit, even if the enemy has high Effect Resistance. The DEF-reduction effect is a nice bonus if you’re planning to run Luka in a team with someone capable of that effect. 

Next is Good Night and Sleep Well, another 4-Star Nihility Light Cone that can be picked up by getting lucky while Warping. Just like the previous LC, this gives the wearer 952 HP, 476 ATK and 330 DEF. Toiler will increase the wearer’s DMG dealt by 12% (stacking up to 3 times) for each debuff the target has on them. On his own, Luka can almost always ensure that your foe is Bleeding, translating to a consistent 12% DMG bonus. If you’re running him in a DoT team, though, this bonus can dramatically increase with effects like Wind Shear and Shock, letting Luka hit for way higher damage.

Good Night and Sleep Well

Best Relics and Planar Ornaments for Luka

The most freedom Trailblazers have when making character builds in Honkai: Star Rail has to do with Relics and Luka’s build is no different. Depending on how you want to run him and what team you’re running him in, there are a fair few choices when it comes to Relic and Planar Ornament selection. However, one choice rules the roost and is the best choice in nearly every scenario. 

The best Relic and Planar Ornament combination for Luka is the 4-Piece Champion of Streetwise Boxing set and the 2-Piece Space Sealing Station set. Beginning with Streetwise Boxing, this Relic set will increase Luka’s Physical DMG by 10% and increase his ATK by 5% whenever he attacks an opponent or is hit, which stacks up to 5 times for a 25% bonus. Then, thanks to the Planar Ornament set, Luka will enjoy a 12% ATK increase, which increases by another 12% should Luka’s SPD reach 120 or higher. 

Path of Jabbing Punch

This combination of Relics lets Luka shine in multiple aspects by mainly just increasing his raw stats. Boosting his ATK as high as it can go will not only increase the damage of his Ultimate and Sky-Shatter Fist but also his DoT damage, dramatically boosting his potential across every aspect of his kit. Additionally, the bonus Physical DMG will help aid his more frontal attacks and sources of damage, letting Luka confidently deal with threats outside of simply relying on Bleed. Reaching 120 SPD for the bonus Planar Ornament set may be a bit challenging, but the bonus ATK is certainly worth it, as is the extra SPD.

If you want to go down a different path and would prefer it if Luka was solely focused on Bleed and DoT, try out the Pan-Galactic Commerical Enterprise Planar Ornament set, instead. This increases the wearer’s Effect Hit Rate by 10%. Meanwhile, the wearer’s ATK also increases by an amount equal to 255 of the current Effect Hit Rate, up to a maximum of 25%. While lacking in the direct firepower of Space Sealing Station, it will ensure that Luka is always able to get off Bleed and his other debuff effects without worry. 

Luka’s Best Relics

Most Important Luka Stats

Here are the stats we recommend hunting for on Luka’s Relics. If you manage to nab these (or something close to them) then Luka will be in good shape no matter if he’s a main DPS or a DoT support:

• Body: Effect Hit Rate
• Feet: SPD
• Planar Sphere: ATK%
• Link Rope: ATK%

On the other hand, here are the substats you’ll want to prioritise when rolling on your Relics:

1. ATK%
2. Effect Hit Rate
3. SPD%
4. CRIT

Always Training, No Matter What

Best Teams for Luka in HSR

Luka Premium Team

Thanks to Luka’s hybrid role and how his kit functions, it’s rare that he’ll be the star of a team, instead taking on a supportive DPS role to help aid the main DPS. As such, he can honestly slot into a lot of different compositions very effectively, with his best teams complimenting his ability to consistently apply Bleed. When making a team for Luka, you want one that supports his strength while allowing him to shine in terms of both damage and utility. 

One of the best teams he can be involved with is entirely focused on damage over time. As such, Luka’s best premium team features Kafka, Serval and Sampo, with the potential addition of Natasha or Luocha. 

Luka Premium Team

First up is the true star of the show, Kafka. As expected of the infamous Stellaron Hunter, Kafka is the queen of DoT and Shock and she will be this team’s primary DPS. With high overall damage and the ability to follow up on any ally’s attack, Kafka is insanely strong at baseline. Things get better, though, with the introduction of her Skill and Ultimate. Her Skill hits multiple targets for high Lightning DMG and then will trigger any DoT on the current target – including Luka’s Bleed and Sampo’s Wind Shear – to create an instantaneous explosion of damage. This is alongside Kafka’s near continuous ability to apply Shock, which boosts her damage and ATK alongside being very strong.

Next up is Sampo. What Luka is to Bleed, Sampo is to Wind Shear. With multiple reliable sources of Wind Shear in his kit, Sampo will always be dealing very high damage at a consistent rate while adding to the pile of DoT that this team will accrue. Between his Skill and his Talent, it’ll be rare to see a target without Wind Shear while running Sampo. What makes him even better, though, is that Sampo’s Ultimate has a 100% base chance to increase the damage the target takes from DoT for 2 turns: this includes Luka’s Bleed and Serval and Kafka’s Shock, turning Sampo into a giant boon for this whole team. 

Lastly, we have Serval, our only non-Nihility unit. Despite this, she can still dish out massive amounts of Shock damage, with her Skill having an 80% base chance to inflict Shock on multiple targets while her Talent deals additional damage to Shocked targets each time she attacks. This makes her a perfect pair with Kafka and the two will synergise perfectly with one another. However, it is worth mentioning that this team is quite squishy: if you cannot kill targets fast enough, there’s a high risk that you may wind up dead. As such, consider using a healer like Luocha or Natahsa in place of Serval if you’re having survivability troubles. 

Serval, Shock Master

Luka F2P Team

If you’re looking for a more cost-effective team for Luka and want to rely on F2P characters, there are still some superb options. The following team is still able to output high DoT damage alongside various ATK buffs while staying healthy. If you want to run a free-to-play team for Luka, we recommend running him with Asta, Serval and Natasha

Any Trailblazer knowledgeable about F2P teams will know the importance and power of Asta and Natasha. Starting with the latter, Natasha is the only F2P healer currently in the game, making her a staple of most teams currently in circulation. Thankfully, she’s very good and a reliable healer for any stage in the game. Her Skill and Ultimate provide plentiful healing, meaning that you should never die so long as you keep an eye on the situation and stay alert. Additionally, as a Physical character, she can help aid Luka with Bleed. 

Luka F2P Team

Next up is Asta. In this F2P team, she plays a similar role to Luka as a hybrid DPS support. While Luka is capable of inflicting heavy debuffs, Asta’s Talent allows her to imbue the entire team with a strong ATK buff, boosting their power and damage significantly. On top of this, she’s an excellent Weakness Breaker and has several ways of inflicting Burn directly in her kit. This means that she can stand side by side with Luka and Serval, giving you access to a near-constant rotation of Burn, Bleed and Shock. 

Lastly, once again, we have Serval. She’ll be serving the same role as she did in the premium team. Several will work alongside Asta and Luka as the main damage dealer, inflicting multiple targets with consistent sources of Shock from her Skill and Ultimate. With Shock, Bleed and Burn all on one target, you’ll be able to shred through bosses at a blinding pace and tear down any foe who threatens to confront you. 

Asta, Burner and ATK Buffer

That was how to make the best Luka build in Honkai: Star Rail.