Genshin Impact, guys, is packed with a colorful cast of characters, each bringing their own unique skills and abilities to the table. While DPS characters often steal the spotlight with their flashy attacks and high damage numbers, it's the support characters who truly enable those damage dealers to shine. A well-built support can make all the difference in tackling challenging content like the Spiral Abyss or taking down tough bosses. So, who are the absolute best support characters in Genshin Impact? Let's dive in!

Understanding the Role of a Support Character

Before we get into the specifics, let's clarify what exactly a support character does in Genshin Impact. Unlike damage dealers who focus on dealing massive amounts of damage, support characters are designed to enhance the team's overall performance through a variety of means. These include:

• Healing: Keeping your team alive is paramount, and healers like Bennett, Kokomi, and Jean are invaluable for sustaining your party through tough encounters. They provide a safety net, ensuring that your damage dealers can continue dishing out damage without constantly worrying about their health.
• Buffing: Buffs can significantly increase your team's damage output, attack speed, or other crucial stats. Characters like Bennett, Sara Kujou, and Mona can provide powerful buffs that amplify your team's offensive capabilities, allowing you to clear content faster and more efficiently.
• Shielding: Shields are another excellent way to mitigate damage and protect your team from incoming attacks. Zhongli, Diona, and Layla are all capable of creating strong shields that can absorb a significant amount of damage, providing a layer of protection against enemy attacks.
• Crowd Control: Controlling the battlefield is essential, especially when dealing with large groups of enemies. Characters like Venti, Kazuha, and Sucrose can group enemies together, making them easier to hit with AoE attacks and maximizing your team's damage potential.
• Energy Generation: Elemental Bursts are powerful abilities that can turn the tide of battle, but they require a significant amount of energy to charge. Raiden Shogun, Fischl, and the Traveler (Electro) are excellent at generating energy for the team, allowing you to use your Elemental Bursts more frequently.
• Elemental Application: Applying elements to enemies is crucial for triggering powerful elemental reactions. Characters like Xiangling, Xingqiu, and Yelan are adept at applying their respective elements consistently, enabling you to create devastating elemental reactions that can obliterate your opponents.

Top Tier Support Characters

Alright, let's get to the good stuff! Here are some of the best support characters in Genshin Impact, along with a brief explanation of why they're so highly valued:

Bennett: The Pyro Archon (of Support)

Bennett is arguably the best all-around support character in Genshin Impact. His Elemental Burst, Fantastic Voyage, creates an Inspiration Field that heals characters within its radius and provides a massive ATK buff. What makes Bennett so incredible is his versatility – he can fit into virtually any team composition and provide significant value, regardless of the other characters on the team. His healing is substantial, his ATK buff is one of the strongest in the game, and his energy recharge is excellent, ensuring that his Burst is always ready when you need it. Building Bennett is also relatively easy; focus on Energy Recharge and HP to maximize his healing and Burst uptime. Trust me, guys, if you have Bennett, you should definitely invest in him.

His ability to heal and buff simultaneously makes him incredibly efficient, freeing up team slots for other specialized support characters or damage dealers. Moreover, Bennett's effectiveness isn't heavily reliant on constellations, making him a top-tier support even at Constellation 0. However, his Constellation 1 removes the HP restriction on his ATK buff, making him even more powerful. This is why Bennett is often referred to as the Pyro Archon of support – his impact on the team is simply unmatched. In short, Bennett's combination of healing, ATK buff, and energy generation makes him an indispensable asset for any Genshin Impact player, regardless of their playstyle or team composition. Whether you're tackling the Spiral Abyss, challenging domains, or exploring the open world, Bennett will always be a valuable addition to your team.

Zhongli: The Shield God

Zhongli, the Geo Archon, is renowned for his unbreakable shield. His Elemental Skill, Dominus Lapidis, creates a Jade Shield that absorbs a tremendous amount of damage and reduces the Elemental and Physical RES of nearby enemies. Zhongli's shield is so strong that it can often withstand even the most devastating attacks, providing your team with unparalleled protection. In addition to his shield, Zhongli's Elemental Burst, Planet Befall, petrifies enemies, rendering them immobile for a short period. This can be incredibly useful for controlling the battlefield and preventing enemies from attacking.

Zhongli's shield provides a sense of security and allows your team to focus on dealing damage without constantly worrying about dodging or healing. His RES shred further amplifies your team's damage output, making him an invaluable asset for tackling challenging content. Building Zhongli is straightforward; focus on HP to maximize his shield strength. Seriously, with Zhongli on your team, you can often face-tank enemies that would otherwise obliterate your party. He's particularly effective in teams that lack healing, as his shield can prevent damage altogether. Moreover, Zhongli's petrification ability is excellent for interrupting enemy attacks and crowd control, providing additional utility to his already impressive kit. In essence, Zhongli's combination of a near-indestructible shield and RES shred makes him one of the best defensive supports in the game.

Kazuha: The Anemo Crowd Control King

Kazuha is an amazing Anemo support character known for his exceptional crowd control abilities and Elemental DMG bonus. His Elemental Skill, Chihayaburu, pulls enemies towards him and launches him into the air, allowing him to perform a Plunging Attack that deals Anemo DMG and absorbs any infused element. His Elemental Burst, Kazuha Slash, creates a field that deals Anemo DMG and continuously absorbs and converts any infused element into additional DMG of that element.

Kazuha's ability to group enemies together makes them easier to hit with AoE attacks, significantly increasing your team's damage output. His Elemental DMG Bonus, granted based on his Elemental Mastery, further amplifies your team's damage, especially when utilizing elemental reactions. Building Kazuha is relatively simple; focus on Elemental Mastery to maximize his DMG Bonus and Swirl damage. Dude, Kazuha is a game-changer in the Spiral Abyss and other challenging content, where grouping enemies together is crucial for success. His versatility allows him to fit into a variety of teams, and his ability to boost your team's damage makes him an invaluable asset. In short, Kazuha's combination of crowd control, Elemental DMG Bonus, and versatility makes him one of the best Anemo supports in the game.

Xingqiu: The Hydro Application God

Xingqiu is widely regarded as one of the best Hydro support characters in Genshin Impact, thanks to his consistent Hydro application and damage mitigation. His Elemental Skill, Guhua Sword: Fatal Rainscreen, creates Rain Swords that orbit the active character, reducing incoming damage and applying Hydro to nearby enemies. His Elemental Burst, Guhua Sword: Raincutter, summons even more Rain Swords that attack alongside the active character, continuously applying Hydro to enemies.

Xingqiu's Hydro application is essential for triggering powerful Vaporize and Electro-Charged reactions, significantly increasing your team's damage output. His Rain Swords also provide damage mitigation, reducing the amount of damage your team takes. Building Xingqiu requires a focus on Energy Recharge and Hydro DMG Bonus to maximize his Burst uptime and damage potential. Believe me, Xingqiu is a must-have for any team that relies on Vaporize or Electro-Charged reactions. His consistent Hydro application and damage mitigation make him an invaluable asset for tackling challenging content. In essence, Xingqiu's combination of consistent Hydro application and damage mitigation makes him one of the best Hydro supports in the game.

Honorable Mentions

While the characters listed above are undoubtedly some of the best support characters in Genshin Impact, there are several other characters who deserve an honorable mention:

• Raiden Shogun: Provides excellent energy regeneration for the team and buffs Elemental Burst damage.
• Kokomi: A reliable healer who can also apply Hydro consistently.
• Diona: Provides shielding, healing, and Cryo application.
• Sucrose: An excellent Elemental Mastery buffer and crowd controller.
• Yelan: Similar to Xingqiu, provides consistent Hydro application and damage bonus.

Final Thoughts

Choosing the best support characters for your team depends on your specific needs and playstyle. However, the characters listed above are all excellent choices that can significantly enhance your team's performance. Remember, a well-built support can make all the difference in tackling challenging content and maximizing your enjoyment of Genshin Impact. So, experiment with different support characters and find the ones that work best for you. And hey, don't underestimate the power of a good support – they're the unsung heroes of Genshin Impact!