Kafka is one of the Stellaron Hunters in Honkai Star Rail and an amazing damage dealer. She belongs to the 5-star rarity and is a Lightning character who follows the Path of Nihility. She is capable of dealing a lot of DoT damage to enemies, especially after her recent buffs. By pairing her up with some other suitable characters and equipping her with the right gear, you can make the most out of her abilities in the game. To help you with that, we have prepared the complete Honkai Star Rail Kafka build guide, which includes details about her best light cones, relic sets, and team compositions.
Table of Contents
Honkai Star Rail Kafka Best Build Guide
HSR Kafka Character Stats – Breakdown
| Type | Detail |
|---|---|
| Rarity | 5-star |
| Element | Lightning |
| Path | Nihility |
| Role | Main DPS |
| ATK | 679 |
| DEF | 485 |
| HP | 1087 |
| SPD | 100 |
| Energy | 120 |
| Strengths | • Can deal a lot of DoT damage with various abilities. • Able to inflict enemies with Shock. • Can pair with any other DoT damage-focused character. |
| Weaknesses | • Damage output may seem lacking when enemies are not afflicted with DoT effects. • Requires at least one more DoT damage-focused character for best results. |
Kafka is a 5-star Lightning character in Honkai Star Rail and one of the Stellaron Hunters. She is quite a versatile character who can continuously deal damage to enemies via her DoT abilities. She has a fair amount of personal damage and can inflict additional damage whenever another character attacks an enemy. Following Kafka’s recent buffs, she is greatly improved and can function well alongside the latest 5-star character, Hysilens.
Should you pull Kafka?
Yes, Kafka is definitely worth summoning in HSR, especially if you own another DoT damage-focused character like Hysilens or Black Swan. In such scenarios, she is capable of providing significant damage output that will let you clear any in-game challenge with relative ease.
However, you should note that if Kafka is the only DoT character on your team, you will not see amazing results. While she will still deal decent damage, it would not be close to her actual potential.
HSR Kafka Build: Best Light Cones
Kafka’s signature light cone, Patience Is All You Need, is an amazing 5-star option for her if you are building her as a Main DPS. Apart from that, Cipher’s signature light cone, Lies Dance on the Breeze, can be worth equipping, especially if you plan to use her as a support. Other than these, any of the following options can serve you well:
| Light Cone | Rarity | Details |
|---|---|---|
 Patience Is All You Need | 5-star | • Increases DMG dealt and SPD. • Can deal additional Lightning DoT DMG. |
 Lies Dance on the Breeze | 5-star | • Increase SPD. • Reduced enemy DEF. |
 Reforged Remembrance | 5-star | • Increases Effect Hit Rate and ATK. • Reduces enemy DEF against DoT DMG. |
 Those Many Springs | 5-star | • Increases Effect Hit Rate. • Buffs DMG taken by enemies. |
 Good Night and Sleep Well | 4-star | • Buffs DMG against enemies afflicted with debuffs. |
 Before the Tutorial Mission Starts | 4-star | • Increases Effect Hit Rate. • Recovers Energy after attacking enemies who have had their DEF slashed. |
HSR Kafka Build: Best Relics
When building Kafka as a Main DPS, it is recommended to equip her with the Prisoner in Deep Confinement relic set in HSR. As for the Support build, Eagle of Twilight Line will serve you well. Let’s look at the advantages these sets offer and where to find them:
| Relic Set | Where to Find | Stats |
|---|---|---|
 Prisoner in Deep Confinement | Fyxestroll Garden, Xianzhou Luofu | 2-Piece: Increases ATK by 12%. 4-Piece: For every DoT the target enemy is afflicted with, the wearer will ignore 6% of target’s DEF when dealing DMG to them. This effect is valid for a max of 3 DoTs. |
 Eagle of Twilight Line | Storage Zone, Herta Space Station | 2-Piece: Increases Wind DMG by 10%. 4-Piece: After the wearer uses their Ultimate, their action is Advanced Forward by 25%. |
Main Stats Priority:
- Body: ATK%
- Feet: SPD
Sub Stats Priority:
- SPD
- ATK%
- Effect Hit
- Flat ATK
ATK and SPD are among the most crucial stats when building Kafka. As such, you should look to equip her with relics that offer them. Apart from these, you can also focus on Effect Hit Rate.
HSR Kafka Build: Best Planar Ornaments
The best planar ornament set for a DPS Kafka is the Revelry of the Sea set. In case you are building her for support, it is advisable to use the Lushaka, the Sunken Seas set on her. Here’s what they both offer and how to get them:
| Relic Set | Where to Find | Stats |
|---|---|---|
 Revelry of the Sea | Radiant Feldspar, Penacony | 2-Piece: Increases the wearer’s ATK by 12%. When the wearer’s ATK is higher than or equal to 2,400/3,600, it increases the DoT DMG dealt by 12%/24%. |
 Lushaka, the Sunken Seas | Radiant Feldspar, Penacony | 2-Piece: Increases the wearer’s Energy Regeneration Rate by 5%. If the wearer is not the first character in the team lineup, then increase the ATK of the first character in the team lineup by 12%. |
Main Stats Priority:
- Planar Sphere: Lightning DMG
- Link Rope: ATK%
Sub Stats Priority:
- SPD
- ATK%
- Effect Hit
- Flat ATK
HSR Kafka Build: Best Team Compositions
Premium Teams
| Main DPS | Sub-DPS | Sub-DPS / Support | Sub-DPS / Support |
|---|---|---|---|
 Kafka |  Hysilens |  Black Swan |  Huohuo |
| Main DPS | Sub-DPS | Sub-DPS / Support | Sub-DPS / Support |
|---|---|---|---|
Kafka | Hysilens |  Ruan Mei | Huohuo |
As of the ongoing HSR version 3.5, Hysilens is the best teammate for Kafka. Both of their abilities pair well together and let them deal significant DoT damage to the enemies. In the third slot, you can either go for Black Swan or Ruan Mei, or any other suitable character you have. Lastly, Huohuo can function as a reliable sustainer to ensure the survival of the team.
| Main DPS | Sub-DPS | Sub-DPS / Support | Sub-DPS / Support |
|---|---|---|---|
Kafka |  Tribbie | Ruan Mei | Huohuo |
In case you do not have either Hysilens or Black Swan for a Kafka team composition, you can opt for Tribbie in the role instead to form a hypercarry team. She provides several buffs and can improve the damage output of Kafka.
F2P Team
| Main DPS | Sub-DPS | Sub-DPS / Support | Sub-DPS / Support |
|---|---|---|---|
Kafka |  Serval |  Asta |  Natasha |
If you are an F2P player looking to build a Kafka team with only 4-star characters, then Serval, Asta, and Natasha can serve you well. The former can trigger DoT damage, whereas Asta can buff ATK and SPD. As for Natasha, she can heal the team during combat to keep them alive.
HSR Kafka Build: Kit Details and Trace Level-up Priority
Here are all of Kafka’s Traces and Ascension abilities, alongside details about what they do in-game:
| Ability | Effect | Priority |
|---|---|---|
| Basic Attack | Midnight Tumult: Deals Lightning DMG equal to 50% of Kafka’s ATK to a single enemy. | Low |
| Skill | Caressing Moonlight: Deals Lightning DMG equal to 80% of Kafka’s ATK to a target enemy and Lightning DMG equal to 30% of Kafka’s ATK to enemies adjacent to it. If the designated enemy or the adjacent targets are currently afflicted with DoT, all DoTs currently placed on those enemies immediately produce DMG equal to 60% or 40% of the original DMG. | High |
| Ultimate | Twilight Trill: Deals Lightning DMG equal to 48% of Kafka’s ATK to all enemies, with a 100% base chance for enemies hit to become Shocked and immediately take DMG from their current Shock state, equal to 80% of its original DMG. Shock lasts for 2 turn(s). While Shocked, enemies receive Lightning DoT equal to 116% of Kafka’s ATK at the beginning of each turn. | High |
| Talent | Gentle but Cruel: After Kafka’s teammate uses an attack on the enemy target, Kafka immediately launches Follow-up ATK and deals Lightning DMG equal to 42% of Kafka’s ATK to the primary target, with a 100% base chance to inflict Shock on the attacked enemy for 2 turns. This effect can trigger up to 2 times, 1 of which can be regained at the end of Kafka’s turn. | High |
| Technique | Mercy Is Not Forgiveness: Immediately attacks all enemies within a set range. After entering battle, deals Lightning DMG equal to 50% of Kafka’s ATK to all enemies, with a 100% base chance to inflict Shock equivalent to that applied by her Ultimate on every enemy target for 2 turns. | High |
| Ascension 2 | Torture: When an ally target’s Effect Hit Rate is 75% or higher, Kafka increases that target’s ATK by 100%. | Medium |
| Ascension 4 | Plunder: If an enemy is defeated while Shocked, Kafka additionally regenerates 5 Energy. | Medium |
| Ascension 6 | Thorns: After using Ultimate, restores the triggerable count of Talent’s Follow-up ATK by 1. And the Talent’s Follow-up ATK can cause all DoT debuffs currently on the target to immediately produce DMG equal to 80% of the original DMG. | High |
HSR Kafka Build: Eidolons
Let’s look at all of Kafka’s Eidolon abilities and if they are worth getting in HSR:
| Eidolon | Effect | Value |
|---|---|---|
| E1 | De Capo: When the Talent triggers a follow-up attack, there is a 100% base chance to increase the DoT received by the target by 30% for 2 turns. | Great |
| E2 | Fortississimo: While Kafka is on the field, DoT dealt by all allies increases by 33%. | Good |
| E3 | Capriccio: Skill Lv. +2, up to a maximum of Lv. 15. Basic ATK Lv. +1, up to a maximum of Lv. 10. | Good |
| E4 | Recitativo: When an enemy target takes DMG from the Shock status inflicted by Kafka, Kafka additionally regenerates 2 Energy. | Good |
| E5 | Doloroso: Ultimate Lv. +2, up to a maximum of Lv. 15. Talent Lv. +2, up to a maximum of Lv. 15. | Good |
| E6 | Leggiero: The Shock inflicted on the enemy target by the Ultimate, the Technique, or the Talent-triggered follow-up attack has a DMG multiplier increase of 156% and lasts 1 turn longer. | Good |
How and When Can You Get Kafka in Honkai Star Rail?
Kafka has currently returned on the gacha banners of HSR during the first half of the ongoing HSR version 3.5. Players can summon her starting from August 12, 2025, until September 2, 2025. Additionally, her signature light cone, Patience Is All You Need, is also available during this period.
Note that Kafka’s banner includes Asta, Arlan, and Hook as 4-star characters. As such, you also stand a chance to obtain them when pulling for this Nihility unit.
