Howling Tides Five-Star Weapon Power Ranking and Draw Guide (Latest 2.6 Version, 2025)

In Howling Tides, five-star weapons are one of the most crucial factors in character development. Compared to four-star weapons, five-star weapons not only significantly outperform in base stats, but also possess unique passive effects and exclusive bonuses that can directly enhance a character's combat positioning and team performance. With the introduction of new characters like Augusta and Iuno in Patch 2.6, many established "signature weapons" have regained their value. This article will present the latest five-star weapon rankings based on versatility, raw power, and value for money, and provide draw recommendations based on actual situations.

1. Standard Pool Five-Star Weapons: A Stable and Reliable All-Around Choice

Standard Pool weapons are available in the permanent card pool and are suitable for most players as a foundational build. These weapons often offer a combination of versatility and stable stats, making them durable and timeless.

Tier 0.5: Top-tier All-Around Weapon

Genesis Emerald (Sword)

Base Attack Damage: 587

Secondary Attribute: Critical Hit Rate +24.3%

Advantages: High Critical Hit Rate secondary attribute + Attack Damage stacking, passive ability scales with base Attack Damage, suitable for almost all Sword characters.

Compatible Characters: Most Swordsman characters (except for a few with low compatibility, such as Cartethyia, Jiyan, and Sanhua).

Recommendation: Must-draw. As one of the most versatile standard weapons, this investment is definitely worth it.

Tier 1: Clearly Functional DPS Weapon

Cosmic Ripple (Rectifier)

Attributes: Base Attack Damage 500, Secondary Attribute: Attack Damage +53.9%

Features: Basic Attack Damage + Resonance Efficiency Improvement, suitable for off-board DPS players like Anke, Zhezhi, and Cantarella.

Static Mist (Pistol)

Attributes: Base Attack Damage 587, Secondary Critical Chance +24.3%

Features: Provides consistent critical hits and a damage bonus on the field, making it a top choice for Chixia and Motif.

T1.5: Selected Characters Only

Lustrous Razor (Broadblade)

Attributes: Base Attack Damage 587, Secondary Attack Damage +36.4%

Effect: Increases ultimate damage. Lupa performs well, but Calcharo is a better fit for his signature weapon.

T2: Almost no versatility

Abyssal Surge (Challenge)

Limitations: Only compatible with Lingyang, other characters have little use for it.

Summary: For standard weapons, choose Genesis Emerald, then supplement with Cosmic Ripple or Static Mist depending on your lineup. This is a stable investment that doesn't waste resources.

II. Limited Pool Five-Star Weapons: High Burst, but Character-Reliant

Limited Pool Five-Star Weapons are often released as character signature weapons. Their advantage lies in maximizing the potential of a specific character, but they lack cross-character flexibility.

Tier 0: Meta-Defining Tier

String Master (Rectifier, Silverscale Exclusive)

Attributes: Base Attack Damage 500, Secondary Critical Hit Chance +35.9%

Power Analysis:

All-Around Damage Bonus: +24% to all attack types, practically equivalent to a general-purpose damage artifact.

Attack Stacking: Quickly stacks up attacks from the player, perfect for Yinlin, Encore, and Verina.

Player Swap Boost: When swapping characters, grants +24% attack damage to the next character, enhancing burst rotation efficiency.

Review: Extremely versatile, equivalent to a universal weapon for all classes. Highly recommended.

Tier 0.5: Superior Cross-Character Weapon

Emerald Peak (Jiyan Exclusive): +48.6% Critical Damage. The passive channeled damage allows Augusta and Jiyan to perform exceptionally well.

Viliti's Handle (Iuno Exclusive): +24.3% Critical Hit Chance, perfectly complementing Iuno's Resonance Burst.

Tragicomedy (Rosa's exclusive weapon): +24.3% critical strike rate, highly compatible with Zani, but with imperfect stats and average value for money.

Frosted Sprout (Zhezhi's exclusive weapon): Significantly increases base damage off-field, valuable against Encore and Cantarella.

T1: Clear positioning but limited.

Brilliant Radiance: +48.6% critical strike damage, suitable for Danjin and Rover.

Siren's Whisper: +72% critical strike damage, a basic attack modifier, the best choice for Cantarella.

Wildfire Mark: Lupa's exclusive weapon, but Lupa isn't a main carry, so it's not a high priority.

The Last Dance: A must-have weapon for Carlotta.

Blood Pact: +38.8% energy regeneration, available for free. While not top-tier in power, it offers excellent value for money.

Tier 1.5: Essential for a main carry

Red Spring (Camellya exclusive)

Elegy of Forgotten River (Phrolova exclusive)

Harvest Age (Jinhsi exclusive)

Distinctive Features: Extremely dependent on its corresponding character, its value in character swaps is almost zero.

Tier 2: Strong but niche

Glorious Hymn (Phoebe exclusive): Useful for Phoebe herself, but low priority since she's not a core carry.

Burning Justice (Zani exclusive): A defense negation effect, essential for main carries.

Challenger's Thorn (Cartethyia exclusive) & Indomitable Courage (Brant exclusive): Useful only for one character, lacking cross-character value.

Glade Aria (Ciaccona exclusive): No versatility, recommended skip.

Tier 3: Value Traps

Symphony of the Stars (Shorekeeper exclusive)

The resonance efficiency and team attack bonus it provides aren't enough to justify its five-star status. Even at R5 refinement, it's far inferior to higher-refined four-star alternatives.

Recommendation: Completely skip this, as the investment is extremely poor value for money.

III. Summary of Five-Star Weapon Draw Priorities

Highly Recommended (Versatile/Top-tier Environment)

Master of Strings

Emerald of Genesis

Cosmic Ripples

Static Mist

Verdant Peak

Velity's Grip

Frosted Buds

Must-Draw (Exclusive to Main C-Character)

Red Spring

Elegy of Lethe

Harvest Time

Fiery Justice

The Last Dance

Challenger's Thorn

Unyielding Courage

Recommended to skip this (Low Value)

Lustrous Razor

Surging Abyss

Glorious Hymn

Woodland Aria

Wildfire Mark

Tragicomedy

Symphony of the Stars

IV. Special Notes for Patch 2.6

Augusta and Iuno Introduced: Jiyan and Kaoriyao's old exclusive weapons are experiencing a resurgence. If you happen to have Verdant Peak or Verity's Grip in your inventory, be sure to keep them.

Prioritize versatility over specialized weapons: Versatile weapons like the Master of Strings and the Genesis Emerald can serve multiple characters and offer far greater long-term investment value than single-character specialized weapons.

Options for those on a limited budget: Event weapons like Blood Pact and some highly refined four-star weapons can serve as a bridge when five-star weapons are scarce.

V. Summary: How to Make Smart Weapon Investments?

The weapon system in Howling Tides is constantly evolving with new characters and patch balance. While specialized weapons can help a character reach their peak, a weapon that can be used across multiple characters is a smarter investment in the long run.

Preferred all-around artifacts: the Master of Strings and the Genesis Emerald.

Completing your lineup: Cosmic Ripple and Static Mist.

Also consider core C-suit specialized weapons like Red Spring, Lethe's Elegy, and Blazing Justice.

Sound resource planning will help you more easily adapt to changes in the meta in future patches and avoid wasted investment due to patch changes.