Genshin Impact reveals second half banners for version 6.2

Genshin Impact has officially revealed the event banner for the second half of version 6.2, as Gaming, Chevreuse and Iansan will join Xilonen and Varesa in a series of replays. With Genshin Impact entering the second phase of version 6.2, there's growing excitement in the community: a new map expansion for Nod-Krai is coming, and it's bringing Columbina with it. As the region's equivalent of an Archon, Columbina is expected to elevate the Nod-Krai characters to a whole new level.

But before Columbina can make its debut in Genshin Impactthere are some important replays to go through. Chief among them belong to Varesa and Xilonen. As a character, Varesa established himself as a dedicated Electro hypercarry for the Plunging Attack playstyle. She is one of the strongest damage dealers in the entire game, and has a flexible selection of teammates to choose from – for either Aggravate or Overload builds. On the other hand, the Xilon is still one of the best support characters in Genshin Impactan almost universal option for a variety of hypercarries.

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Varese – 5-star electrocatalyst

The xylon – 5 Star Geosword

Gambling – 4-star Pyro Claymore

Chevreuse – 4-star Pyro Polearm

Iansan – 4-star electropolar arm

Both Genshin Impact characters will appear in the second half of version 6.2, but the real value is undoubtedly in the four stars. Xilonen and Varesa will be paired with Gaming, Chevreuse and Iansan. Gaming remains a powerful Pyro hypercarry, despite being a 4-star character, whose ability kit scales extremely well with Constellations. Chevreuse is a premium option for Overload teams, providing large buffs to Elemental Reaction in addition to fulfilling the role of a healer. Finally, Iansan can best be described as the reverse Bennett – providing a flat ATK buffer that scales with movement, rather than limiting it, making Iansan ideal for hypercarries that can't stand still, like Varesa, Xiao, Clorinde, or even Gaming himself.

With this in mind, players can easily create a budget overload team (Gaming, Chevreuse, Iansan, Fischl) from version 6.2 with only its banner characters and the free Hexerei summon obtained by completing the Witch's Homework tutorial in Genshin Impact. While veteran accounts have undoubtedly already established their primary teams, this patch is a great starting point for newcomers who may want to try the Overload playstyle.

genshin impact version 6.3 columbina ability kit

However, there is one very important point to keep in mind: the upcoming event banner in version 6.3 and the lack of Primogems in version 6.2. With a limited number of entwined wishes handed out by both version 6.1 and version 6.2, most players will have to make a choice: take this opportunity to stock up on some of the best 4-star characters in Genshin Impactor save their moves for Columbina (and potentially Zibai as well). Recently datamined information points to Columbina and Neuvillette as headliners in the first half of version 6.3, with Zibai and Ineffa in the second half.

genshin impact version 6.3 banners columbina zibai illuga neuvillette ineffa

For players who are fond of Lunar Reactions and Nod-Krai characters, the event banner in version 6.2 is a necessary skip. Conversely, players who prefer the new Hexerei system should refrain from spending their Primogems during version 6.3, as version 6.4 is expected to include Varka and Lohen – both Knights of Favonius characters, with the latter being a new Standard Banner character in Genshin Impact.

The event banner for the second phase will debut on December 23, 2025 and will last until the release of version 6.3. A fun detail to point out is that Varesa's replay banner is identical to her debut banner, featuring the exact same trio of 4-star characters. As such players who moved in for Varesa Genshin Impact under version 5.5 may not get as much value the second time. Version 6.3 is expected to launch on January 14, 2026.