Genshin Influence contains several banners that you can wish for to get sporadic characters and weapons. Each banner is a different type of slot machine, and understanding their probabilities is key to avoiding disappointment.
This article is part of a series on Genshin Impact intricate gacha system. It’s crucial to understand exactly what you’re getting into when you engage in predatory gambling mechanics like these. By knowing your odds, you can get a realistic picture of what to expect from your winnings and make smarter decisions when spending your precious Primogems.
Genshin Influence wishes, explained
The standard banner is a great place to start learning Genshin Impact complicated wish system. Character and weapon banners work similarly, with minor differences. The Chronicled Wish banner is the most unique and is only available in sporadic cases. You can read about these special banners on their own pages.
Genshin Impact standard banner uses blue Learn the Fate as a currency to draw at the rate of one Ticket per draw. No other banner uses Tickets of Recognition. You power spend Primogems on a standard banner, but doing this is a mistake. Save other downloadable currencies for event banners. Only exploit Acquaint Fates to download the standard banner.
When you make a wish (or “draw”), you will usually receive a blue 3-star weapon. I recommend keeping at least one copy of this weapon with a Refinery Rank of 5 in your inventory. Some of these 3-star weapons, such as Harbinger of Dawn or Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers, are actually worth using.
Sometimes you will get a rarer purple 4-star reward. On the standard banner, it can be a character or a weapon. The 4-star reward pool is huge, and you can see exactly what is in it in the banner details in the game. The base rate for getting a 4-star reward in any draw is 5.1%.
You will very rarely get an orange 5-star reward. On the standard banner, the pool of 5-star rewards includes both characters and weapons. The base rate for getting 5 stars in any draw is 0.6%. There is no way to hit a specific 5-star reward of your choice; it is always random. As of version 5.0, the list of standard 5-star characters and weapons is as follows:
| Standard 5 star characters | Standard 5-Star Weapon |
| Dehya Dilute Denim Keqing Monia Qiqi Tighnari |
Bow of Amos (Bow) Aquila Favonia (Sword) Lost Prayer to the Holy Winds (Catalyst) Primordial Jade Winged Spear (Pole Arms) Sky Atlas (Catalyst) Heaven’s Blade (Sword) Skyward Harp (Bow) Pride to the Sky (Claymore) Sky Spine (pipe arm) Wolf Tombstone (Claymore) |
Photo via HoYoverse
Genshin Impact Soft and Hard Compassion
All types of banners in Genshin Influence have a mercy system. This means that after a certain number of wishes (or “pulls”) are fulfilled, the game will take pity on you and give you a sporadic item. The base probability of winning 4-star and 5-star rewards is quite low, but the mercy system effectively raises these rates to provide a more consistent pulling experience.
After a certain number of draws without a 4 or 5 star prize, your chances of winning a rarer prize will gradually escalate. This is called gentle compassion. As you pull the standard banner, the probability of finding a rarer item will escalate until it reaches 100%.
Hard mercy is the absolute maximum number of pulls you need to make to get a sporadic item. If you reach the challenging pity level, you are Guaranteed to pull out a sporadic reward. The number of pulls you need to make to achieve cushioned and challenging sympathy is different for 4-star and 5-star.
Genshin Impact Standard Banner Rates and Mercy
| Rarity | Basic probability | Gentle pity | Hard mercy |
| 5 stars | 0.6% | 74-89 strokes | 90 strokes |
| 4 star | 5.1% | 9 strokes | 10 strokes |
From your last 5-star pull, you must perform 74 pulls to reach the cushioned mercy range. Additional pulls after that point escalate your chances of earning a 5-star reward. Your 90th pull is guaranteed to be a 5-star. Once you see the gold glow indicating 5-star, your reward can be any of the standard 5-star characters and weapons from the table above.
Since your last 4-star pull, your 9th pull has an increased chance of a 4-star reward. If that fails, your 10th pull is guaranteed to be a 4-star.
Does the standard banner guarantee that a character will draw their weapon?
There is a slight weighting system to ensure that you don’t get too many 5-star characters in a row without weapons and vice versa. It is definitely possible to pull three Jeans back to back, but your next 5-star character will probably be a weapon. Your 4-star characters are also weighted, so you don’t get too many characters or weapons in a row. I’ve never pulled more than three consecutive 4-star characters or weapons.
Additions to the standard Genshin Impact banner
New 4-star and 5-star characters are sometimes added to the standard banner prize pool. All novel 4-star characters are added to the standard banner in the version after their debut. Dehya and Tighnari are the only 5-star characters added to the standard banner, and HoYoverse made this clear when the characters were first announced. Unless you’re waiting for a specific 4-star character to be added to the standard banner, there’s no reason to stockpile Acquaint Fates without spending them.
Now that you understand the standard banner, try taking a look at some of the special event banners that are Genshin Impact piece of cake.
FAQs
Do 5-star characters and weapons have equal chances?
5-star characters and weapons have equal chances of being obtained in draws from the standard banner, each with a base rate and probabilities.
How often are characters and weapons added to the standard banner?
New characters and weapons are periodically added to the standard banner prize pool as updates are released, providing players with new opportunities to obtain them.
Credit: herosweb.com
