The arrival of Wuthering Waves Version 3.3 has introduced Hiyuki, a five-star Glacio Sword wielder that Chinese developer Kuro Games has positioned as a premier Main DPS in the current meta.
The new character hails from Ashinohara, a yet-to-be-visited region in the game, and arrives as Wuthering Waves prepares to wrap up the Lahai-Roi arc and move forward with main character Rover’s questline. Even so, that does not diminish Hiyuki’s position as a powerful ice-based attacker. Her samurai and geisha-inspired style makes one thing clear: she strikes with surgical precision, often eliminating enemies in a single sequence, while establishing herself as a threat that any boss encounter should respect.
And we’re going to show you how to build her properly in the breakdown below.
Hiyuki’s Best Weapons
As with any other five-star, banner-featured character in Wuthering Waves, Hiyuki is not alone, as her update also introduces Frostburn, her unique signature weapon. That is, without any doubt, the best option if you are looking to maximize her overall output.
This is because the weapon is tailor-made for her damage profile, offering a significant boost to her Attack (ATK) and Glacio damage, while granting her Resonance Liberation attacks the ability to ignore a portion of the target’s Defense (DEF). For those who have not secured her signature blade, there are viable alternatives that still allow her to perform at a high level:
- Emerald of Genesis: A highly accessible standard five-star sword that provides valuable Energy Regeneration and ATK buffs. If the name sounds familiar, that is because Emerald of Genesis is also one of Rover’s best weapons.
- Red Spring: Another strong five-star option that offers consistent ATK increases and pairs well with her basic attack inputs.
- Feather Edge: The premier four-star choice, found in the Battle Pass, which specifically boosts the Resonance Liberation damage that Hiyuki relies on.
Other options include Commando of Conviction and Fables of Wisdom, for similar reasons.
Echo Sets and Sonata Effects
To maximize Hiyuki’s output, the 5-piece “Wishes of Quiet Snowfall” Echo set is the mandatory choice for any serious build. This set provides a major increase to her Glacio damage and grants a 25 percent Crit Rate boost after she performs her Resonance Liberation.
Given her ability to apply and consume the Glacio Chafe status, which acts as a stacking damage amplifier inflicted by Glacio-based characters, she can take advantage of the “Falling Snow” effect to trigger either personal or team-wide attack buffs more consistently.
The main Echo should always be “Reminiscence: Threnodian – Voidborne Construct,” an optimal 4-cost choice that not only deals its own instance of Glacio damage on summon but also provides a passive 12 percent boost to both Glacio damage and Resonance Liberation damage, perfectly aligning with Hiyuki’s scaling.
If Voidborne Construct is unavailable, a 5-piece “Freezing Frost” set using Lampylumen Myriad as the main Echo serves as a solid alternative.
Statistical Targets and Tuning
This is where things get more nuanced. While her equipment and Echo sets remain consistent, Hiyuki is more flexible than most Wuthering Waves characters.
She has two distinct forms, each benefiting from different upgrade paths: “Present Self,” her base form, and “Foreclaimed Self,” where her highest damage output comes from. The first feeds into the second, so they are connected, but they reward different stat priorities.
- Present Self: The goal here is to build Dedication, her initial Forte gauge, using Intro Skills, Resonance Skills, and specific Basic Attack stages. Once full, she performs an empowered Heavy Attack called Frost Splinter, unlocking her first Resonance Liberation and transitioning into her enhanced state.
- Foreclaimed Self: In this form, her attacks convert into Resonance Liberation damage, and Dedication is replaced by Frostheart. She enters her Iai Stance, delivering rapid slashes while building Whiteout Bitterfrost stacks, which lead into a second empowered Heavy Attack and a final high-damage Resonance Liberation finisher.
Here is the key detail. In Foreclaimed Self, her basic attacks count as Resonance Liberation damage. This creates two build paths. If you invest in Basic Attack upgrades, you reach this form faster and deal stronger early damage. If you invest in Resonance-focused stats, your final burst damage becomes significantly higher.tacks, you can play a strong ATK multiplier that will get you on Foreclaimed Self faster while causing more initial damage. On the other hand, upgrading her Resonance-related stats will give you a much higher final damage number.
These paths are not mutually exclusive, and a balanced approach works well. Still, if you want to optimize her as either a hyper-carry or a team-focused damage dealer, you will need to commit to one direction early.
Beyond that, her stat priorities follow a familiar structure for Wuthering Waves characters. One common mistake is overcapping Crit Rate. With her signature weapon and the Quiet Snowfall set, Hiyuki can exceed 60 percent Crit Rate before sub-stats are applied. Because of this, players should prioritize Crit Damage on their 4-cost Echo to aim for a late-game ratio of around 70 percent Crit Rate to 260 percent Crit Damage.
- Main Stats: Crit DMG or Crit Rate on the 4-cost, Glacio DMG or ATK percent on 3-costs, and ATK percent on 1-costs.
- Energy Regeneration: Aim for 120 to 125 percent to maintain consistent Resonance Liberation uptime.
- Sub-stat Priority: Crit DMG and Crit Rate first, followed by Energy Regeneration, Resonance Liberation damage bonus, and ATK percent.
Final Thoughts
Hiyuki is clearly designed to appeal to a wide range of players. Her introduction addresses a long-standing gap in Wuthering Waves, which lacked a standout Glacio-focused damage dealer. The last major addition in that category came in Version 2.0 with Carlotta.
Her narrative also hints at what lies ahead. Through details revealed in the latter half of the main quest and its epilogue, Hiyuki is portrayed as someone shaped by past failures tied to Ashinohara, which is likely the next major region players will explore. This is especially interesting given its connection to Honami, a location players have only experienced through a digital reconstruction in earlier updates.
Finally, from a gameplay standpoint, Hiyuki stands among the strongest DPS characters introduced during the Lahai-Roi arc. She holds her own alongside names like Phoebe, Cartethyia, and Augusta, while being noticeably more straightforward to use. Her ability to control crowds and deliver heavy burst damage against bosses makes her a reliable pick in almost any team composition.
Wuthering Waves is a free-to-play game available on Windows, Android, iOS, PlayStation 5, and macOS, with optional microtransactions.
