Lyney takes the stage as Genshin Impact arrives in Fontaine! His best builds, gear, teams

Genshin Impact version 4.0 is finally here, bringing Travelers to a new adventure in Fontaine, the Nation of Hydro and Justice!

As with any new journey, it’s always handy to have trusty companions beside you, and the first 5-star character joining the Traveler’s party is none other than Lyney.

Lyney is the Celebrated Magician of the Court of Fontaine, wowing the nation’s crowds alongside his sister and assistant, Lynette. In battle he acts as the team’s main DPS, using a bow and the Pyro element to empower his charged attacks and defeat enemies in a dazzling display.

Lyney will be a worthy companion to help you face all the challenges Fontaine has in store, so here’s everything you need to know about him!

The Court Magician's bag of tricks

Lyney’s kit focuses on dishing out tons of Pyro DMG through his charged attacks, which cost him his own HP to use, then finishing off enemies with his skill and burst before smoothly restarting that cycle. One of his passives also buffs his damage based on the number of other Pyro characters in the party, which means Lyney excels in mono-Pyro compositions.

Lyney’s bread-and-butter is his level 2 charged attack, Card Force Translocation, which fires off a Prop Arrow that deals Pyro DMG and summons a Grin-Malkin Hat upon hitting an enemy. When firing the Prop Arrow, assuming Lyney has more than 60% of his Max HP, he will consume a portion of his HP to obtain 1 Prop Surplus stack.

The Grin-Malkin Hat taunts nearby enemies and will fire off a Pyrotechnic Strike, which deals Pyro DMG, when it is destroyed or if its duration expires. Only 1 Grin-Malkin Hat can exist at any given time.

Prop Surplus will synergise with the rest of Lyney’s kit and has a max of 5 stacks. It will also be removed after he spends 30 seconds out of combat.

Additionally, Lyney’s Prop Arrows will cause a Spiritbreath Thorn to descend upon its hit location, dealing Pneuma-aligned Pyro DMG, at certain intervals.

After Lyney unleashes a barrage of charged attacks, he then uses his skill, Bewildering Lights, to consume all current Prop Surplus stacks to deal area-of-effect Pyro DMG in front of him. The skill’s damage will be increased based on the number of Prop Surplus stacks consumed upon use and will also regenerate his health based on a percentage of his Max HP.

Using Lyney’s skill while a Grin-Malkin Hat is on the field will also cause it to instantly explode, dealing Pyro DMG equal to that of a Pyrotechnic Strike that is also considered as charged attack damage.

Lyney then closes out the show with his burst, Wondrous Trick: Miracle Parade, turning into a Grin-Malkin Cat (not to be confused with the Grin-Malkin Hat) to move quickly through the battlefield and deal Pyro DMG to any nearby enemies. When this ability’s duration ends or is cancelled, Lyney will emerge from the Grin-Malkin Cat and deal area-of-effect Pyro DMG, summon 1 Grin-Malkin Hat, and grant himself 1 Prop Surplus stack.

Lyney’s passive talents serve to boost his already impressive damage output. His A1 passive, Perilous Performance, restores 3 energy for him and increases the DMG of the Grin-Malkin Hat summoned by his skill by 80% of his ATK if he consumes his own HP when firing off the Prop Arrow.

Meanwhile, Lyney’s A4 passive, Conclusive Ovation, increases his damage against enemies affected by Pyro. This passive initially increases his damage by 60%, which will then be increased by 20% for each Pyro-aligned party member other than Lyney up to a maximum of a 100% bonus damage (or 2 Pyro party members other than Lyney).

When in battle, use your supports’ abilities first before switching to Lyney, as his DPS-oriented kit requires him to take up as much field time as possible. Start off by firing off at least three Prop Arrows before using his skill to boost its damage. If Lyney’s energy is full, use his burst to finish off any weakened enemies before restarting your rotation.

Lyney’s best gear

Weapons

Lyney reaches his full potential with his 5-star signature weapon, The First Great Magic, which has a 608 base ATK and 66.2% Crit DMG substat at max level. It also passively increases its wielder’s charged attack damage by 16% and grants them Gimmick or Theatrics stacks depending on if their allies have the same elemental alignment as them.

Gimmick stacks will be gained for every ally with the same element as the wielder, increasing their ATK by 16%/32%/48%. Meanwhile, Theatrics stacks will be gained for every ally with a different element as the wielder, increasing their movement speed by 4%/7%/10%.

Other 5-star bows like the Aqua Simulacra, Thundering Pulse, Hunter’s Path, Amos’ Bow, and Polar Star are all good alternatives for Lyney.

As for his 4-star options, his best bet is the new Battle Pass bow, the Scion of the Blazing Sun, which has a 565 base ATK and a 18.4% Crit Rate substat at max level. When its wielder hits an opponent with a charged attack, it will summon a Sunfire Arrow that deals 60% of their ATK as damage while increasing the charged attack damage received by the hit enemy.

If you’re looking for a free-to-play weapon, then go for the craftable bows Song of Stillness (Fontaine) or Hamayumi (Inazuma).

Song of Stillness increases its wielder’s damage after they are healed (which you need to do for Lyney) while the Hamayumi increases their charged attack damage by 12%, which doubles when their energy is full.

Other 4-star options for Lyney include the Blackcliff Warbow, Prototype Crescent, and The Viridescent Hunt.

Artifacts

As for Lyney’s best artifact set, it will be the new 4-piece Marechaussee Hunter set, which synergises perfectly with his charged attack-focused playstyle that consumes his own HP.

This artifact set’s 2-piece bonus increases its wielder’s normal and charged attack damage by 15% and increases their Crit Rate by 12% for 5 seconds, stacking up to 3 times, when their current HP increases or decreases.

But since you cannot pre-farm the Marechaussee Hunter set, you can settle for the following alternatives while you farm up: 4-piece Crimson Witch of Flames or a mixed set of 2-piece Crimson Witch of Flames and any 2-piece set that increases ATK.

The artifact main stats you need for Lyney will follow the usual template for DPS characters. He needs ATK on his sands, Pyro DMG Bonus on the goblet, and Crit Rate/DMG on the circlet. The substats you should be looking for are Crit Rate/DMG, ATK, Elemental Mastery, and Energy Recharge.

Best teammates

Because of Lyney’s A4 passive, he is incentivised to run alongside as many other Pyro characters as possible to boost his damage. While you can go for a party full of Pyro characters, it is recommended to leave one flex slot depending on your party’s needs.

Let’s break down the best Pyro characters to run with Lyney first:

Bennett is by far Lyney’s best teammate, and it shouldn’t be a surprise why. Bennett’s burst provides both a huge ATK buff and healing for Lyney, boosting his damage while also ensuring his HP consumption won’t put him at risk. Not only that, Bennett’s spammable skill will also be helpful in fulfilling Lyney’s energy needs.

Make no mistake, you need Bennett alongside Lyney. If you don’t have Bennett yet, then you’re in luck as version 4.0’s main event will be giving him for free as a reward.

Xiangling is a strong contender for the third Pyro character in a Lyney party. Xiangling still reigns supreme when it comes to off-field Pyro DMG and that alone is enough of a reason to run her alongside Lyney even if she doesn’t provide much else.

Thoma is a good pick for the third Pyro character in a Lyney party if you’re in need of a more defensive support. While the healing from Bennett’s burst is often enough to sustain you through most battles, some enemies have attacks with a strong knockback effect that forces you to run a shielder.

While you can run other shielders if you want, Thoma being a Pyro shielder lets you leave your party’s flex slot for a more offensive-minded support. If you don’t have Thoma, then Dehya can also fulfill this role, though we don’t really recommend her.

Let’s move on to the flex slot on a Lyney team, which will either go to an offensive or defensive support depending on which Pyro characters you’re running. Here are the best characters to run in the flex slot for Lyney’s party:

If you’re looking to boost your party’s Pyro DMG, then you need Anemo supports, and there’s no better one than Kazuha. If you don’t have him, then worthy alternatives are Venti, Lynette, and Sucrose.

It’s important to keep in mind that if you’re running an Anemo buffer like the characters we’ve listed, you need one of your Pyro characters to be a defensive support. If you don’t have one, then consider going for Anemo healers like Jean or Sayu to give you some sustain at the cost of some offensive value.

Since Lyney’s kit revolves around charged attacks, top Hydro supports Yelan and Xingqiu don’t have the best synergy with him. Instead, you can go for the likes of Mona or Kokomi.

Mona is the more offensive-minded of the two, increasing the party’s damage output through her burst and by unlocking the Vaporize reaction. If you’re looking for a defensive Hydro support, then Kokomi provides off-field Hydro application plus healing.

Finally, Zhongli, Layla, and Diona let your other party members be more offensively-minded by providing shields from the flex slot.

Zhongli has the strongest shield in the game which also has a universal RES shred, not to mention his burst which can provide an area-of-effect disable in a pinch.

Layla and Diona’s shields aren’t as strong as Zhongli’s, but they do offer more offensive versatility by letting your party trigger the Melt reaction. Layla has the stronger shield of the two and more damage output while Diona also provides healing.

Lyney is one of the featured 5-stars of the first half of Genshin Impact version 4.0, with his debut coinciding with another rerun for Yelan. The second half of this version will see reruns for Zhongli and Childe.

Genshin Impact version 4.0 was released on 16 August and is expected to run until late September. Aside from a new region and new characters, version 4.0 also brings with it a new underwater diving mechanic, a revamped party setup menu, multi-layered map, and more!

For everything you need to know about Genshin Impact version 4.0, check here.

After version 4.0 comes version 4.1, which will feature the debuts of Neuvillette and Wriothesley.

Yan Ku is a full-time dog parent, part-time (gacha) gamer, and part-time writer.

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