The best elemental reactions in Genshin Impact

Water, earth, fire, air and even ice and electricity because this isn't Avatar: The Last Airbender but Genshin Impact. In any case, a single element is not enough in Genshin Impact. The game's combat system has been set up so that no element can do everything for you. Of course, a variety of elements is better, especially for anyone tired of their seemingly low DPS output.

These combinations or reactions as the game calls them, occur when two or more elements combine with each other. Knowing what each element does can be important for anyone looking to defeat the toughest enemies solo or otherwise. Using elemental reactions can also be the difference between fast runs and grueling endurance battles.

Updated on October 15, 2024 by Sanyam Jain: With the number of reactions found in Genshin Impact, it's obvious that some of them are significantly more powerful than others. Thankfully, Hoyoverse has tried to bring back some of the less popular reactions in the meta with some specific character kits.

11 Super management

When Electro Meets Cryo

Electricity meeting ice might not be the best in real life, but it's a pretty important reaction in Genshin Impact since it's the only reaction that affects physical DMG. It creates an explosion that reduces the physical RES of all enemies by a huge amount.

This is why you will see different characters that can be good at being a physical DPS belonging to these two elements that Eula, Keqing, Razorand Kaya. Unfortunately, this combination may not be as fun to use as the others in the game.

10 Burning

When Dendro meets Pyro

Burning has been in a pretty unfortunate spot ever since the release of Genshin Impact as it's not that great to use due to the damage being quite less, but it's also one of the most frustrating reactions to deal with in the open world because your characters can be consistently burned if Pyro and Dendro are involved.

Thankfully this reaction is now in the meta with the release of characters like Emily and Kinichwho directly use it to polish their abilities. The former directly increases her damage on a burning enemy while the latter can gain extra Nightsoul points from them, making this reaction viable for those characters specifically.

9 Overloaded

When Pyro meets Electro

Area attacks are valuable because they minimize the time required to dodge and deal with multiple enemies. In that regard, Electro and Pyro are indispensable and are powerful bombs. Combining both can produce some powerful explosives that damage the area and knock back enemies.

Overloaded is pretty much a big Pyro attack that also deals tons of damage. It just so happens that characters using these elements are certified DPS beasts like Razor, Keqing, Diluc, Klee, and even Xiangling. You can also greatly increase the value of this reaction if you have Chevreuse in your party.

8 Flower

When Dendro meets Hydro

Bloom is the only reaction in the game that creates a separate damaging unit on the field. Whenever this reaction is triggered, a Dendro Core is created that explodes after a few seconds to deal Dendro DMG in a small AoE. Unfortunately, this reaction is not the best in itself.

However, HoYoverse released a character specifically to make this reaction work in the form of Nilou. If you have her, Bloom can be one of your best reactions because she can create special Bountiful Cores that explode instantly and deal a lot more damage.

7 Electrocharged

When Hydro meets Electro

For pure continuous DPS that is more profitable than just Pyro alone, combining the good old fashioned electricity with water is an interesting reaction just like how you learned in grade school. It allows players to deal gradual Electro DMG to any enemies caught in the rain. The status and continuous damage will then spread quickly to other enemies and displace them.

That's the beauty of this reaction – it's cheap and readily available just from the weather effects. It makes electric-only solo setups feasible, especially with regular four-star favorites like the Razor or Beidou. It also allows these characters to synergize well with cheap healers such as Barbara.

6 Hyperbloom

When Electro meets Dendro Cores

The Hyperbloom reaction is essentially an extension of the Bloom reaction mentioned above, but it deserves its own slot due to the high value it provides. If you manage to apply Electro to one of the Dendro cores created by Bloom, it turns them into a particle that chooses an enemy at random and deals massive damage to them.

This makes the Bloom reaction viable without Nilou, but remember that Hyperbloom cannot work with Bountiful Cores created by her. This reaction is great for fighting both groups of smaller enemies and single target bosses. The best part about it is that you don't have to get hurt in the process.

5 Frozen

When Cryo meets Hydro

Aside from pure physically charged attacks from certain weapons, there aren't many ways to stun enemies in Genshin Impact and take them out of the fight for several precious seconds. As such, the Frozen reaction is invaluable and likely one of the most used. The effect is pretty self-explanatory, enemies stop in their tracks no matter what they do.

Much like Electro-Charged, it is also common due to how often it rains in the game. It also makes Cryo-only parties viable. Frozen works as both a defensive and offensive combo as it leaves enemies open for several seconds of hammering. The best part is that it is easy to chain and trigger for longer periods.

4 Melt

When Pyro meets Cryo

Melt is arguably one of the strongest reactions in the game, and it can easily take the place of all the other reactions mentioned above on this list if executed correctly. The reaction is triggered when Pyro is applied to Cryo or vice versa, but it does nothing by itself. It simply buffers the DMG of the attack that triggers this reaction.

This DMG boost is nothing to ignore as it essentially doubles the DMG if Pyro is the element that triggers the reaction. Unfortunately, there aren't many off-field Cryo Applicators in the game, making this reaction a bit difficult to use.

3 Swirl

When Anemo meets Cryo, Pyro, Hydro or Electro

One of the statistical reasons why Kaedehara Kazuha is such an overpowered character is that he has a huge Anemo attack, which, when paired with any element other than Geo or Dendro, produces a cavalcade of elemental attacks that also deal area damage.

The main character also has this but to a lesser extent. Either way, combining wind with ice, fire, electricity, or water results in a rainbow explosion that no enemy can resist since everyone is usually only resistant to one type of damage.

2 Accelerate

When Electro meets Dendro

Released alongside Dendro in the version 1.4 update, this reaction quickly climbed the meta ladder in Genshin Impact. Rather than being a straightforward reaction, Quicken involves a chain of reactions that can easily take out any enemy in front if you use it correctly.

When Electro and Dendro meet, the Quicken reaction is triggered. After this reaction, the next Electro or Dendro attack on the enemy triggers Aggravate and Spread respectively. These reactions, much like Vaporize and Melt, greatly increase the damage of this attack. Dendro Resonance makes this reaction even better by giving some extra Elemental Mastery.

1 Vaporize

When Pyro meets Hydro

Finally, the Vaporize reaction easily takes the crown of the best reaction in the game with the ability to make even healers deal over 50,000 DMG. This reaction is triggered when Pyro and Hydro are applied to the same enemy, and it massively mitigates the damage of the attack that triggers this reaction.

It's essentially the same as Melt, but the reason it's so much higher is the availability of phenomenal off-field hydro applicators that Xingqiu, Yelanand Furina. These characters combined with a monster like Hu Tao and Hydro Resonance can easily win you the entire game.