Clara Build, Light Cones & Teams Guide | Honkai Star Rail

Clara is a 5-star Physical Destruction character who excels as a counter-based DPS, dealing consistent damage through her unique retaliation mechanics. Her abilities revolve around being targeted by enemies, allowing Svarog to trigger powerful follow-up attacks whenever Clara or her allies are hit. This playstyle enables her to maintain steady damage output while also benefiting from built-in damage reduction, making her both durable and effective in prolonged fights.

Her combat performance heavily depends on being attacked frequently. Once enemies focus on Clara, she can continuously retaliate with strong counterattacks, greatly increasing her overall DPS without relying on constant Skill usage. Her Ultimate further enhances this by increasing the chance of enemies targeting her and strengthening Svarog’s follow-up attacks, allowing her to deal even more damage during its duration. This makes her highly efficient in terms of Skill Point management while maintaining consistent pressure in battle.

Clara’s kit encourages a reactive playstyle centered around enemy aggression and timing her Ultimate effectively. Activating it at the right moment ensures she absorbs more hits and maximizes her counter damage. She synergizes best with teammates who can sustain her and amplify her damage, such as buffers or healers, as well as characters who do not compete for enemy aggro. This allows Clara to fully capitalize on her mechanics and deliver strong, consistent damage throughout the fight.

Clara’s Talent is her highest priority because it defines her core damage output and overall combat performance. Her Talent enables Svarog to trigger powerful follow-up attacks whenever Clara or her allies are hit, making it the primary source of her damage. Leveling this trace significantly enhances her counter damage and overall contribution, making it essential for maximizing her effectiveness.

Her Ultimate is the second priority. It increases the chance of enemies targeting Clara and enhances her counterattacks, allowing her to deal more consistent damage during its duration. Upgrading her Ultimate improves both her damage output and survivability, ensuring she can maintain strong pressure throughout combat.

Clara’s Skill should be leveled after her core abilities. While it provides additional damage and utility by marking enemies, it is not the main focus of her kit. Since her gameplay revolves around her follow-up attacks, the Skill has a smaller impact compared to her higher-priority traces.

Clara’s Basic ATK remains the lowest priority, as it is rarely used in optimal rotations and offers minimal value for her playstyle. Since her primary role is to deal damage through counterattacks, investing resources into her Basic ATK provides the least benefit compared to upgrading her other traces.

Duran, Dynasty of Running Wolves is the best Planar Ornament for Clara, as it enhances her Follow-Up Attack damage, directly boosting her overall damage output. Since Clara’s kit is centered around counterattacks triggered by Svarog, this set offers the most consistent and powerful performance. However, depending on your build and stat needs, you may also choose between Inert Salsotto or Space Sealing Station. Inert Salsotto provides CRIT Rate and further increases Follow-Up Attack damage once the requirement is met, making it a strong secondary option, while Space Sealing Station offers a straightforward ATK boost, serving as a more accessible alternative for overall damage.

If you want a DPS who excels at punishing enemies for attacking, Clara is an absolute game-changer. She perfectly fits Follow-Up focused teams by consistently triggering powerful damage through Svarog’s counterattacks. Her Talent acts as the core of her damage, allowing her to repeatedly deal high damage whenever she is hit. Even outside dedicated Follow-Up teams, her reliable damage output and strong scaling with her kit make her an incredibly comfortable, offensive-minded pick for many team compositions.