Xiangli Yao, the five-star Electro gauntlet user who arrived in the second half of Wuthering Waves version 1.2, is still talked about in 2026 as one of Kuro Games' most player-friendly releases. He was handed out for free during the Moon-Chasing Festival event, yet he brought the polish, story presence, and raw combat power of a premium banner character. Even years later, his kit remains a useful reference for how Resonance Liberation damage can be woven into nearly every part of a character's rotation.
At first glance, Yao's ability descriptions might seem overloaded with terms like Forte Circuit, Performance Capacity, and Hypercubes. In practice, however, the loop is much simpler than the text suggests. The player cycles through different versions of his Resonance Skill by filling resources and spending them at the right moments. What makes Yao unusual is that most of his output is classified as Resonance Liberation damage, even when it comes from pressing the skill button or following up with a Basic Attack.
His Basic Attack sequence consists of five quick Electro strikes, while his Heavy Attack consumes stamina for a charged Electro hit. His original Resonance Skill is equally straightforward: a mechanical arm strike that deals Electro damage. There are no hidden conditions here. The complexity comes later, when his Forte Circuit and Resonance Liberation begin replacing these moves.
Xiangli Yao can hold up to 100 points of Capacity in his Forte bar. He regenerates Capacity by hitting enemies with Basic Attacks and his Resonance Skill. Once the bar is fully charged, the Resonance Skill is replaced by Decipher. Casting Decipher consumes all Capacity to deal Electro damage that counts as Resonance Liberation damage. Immediately after Decipher, pressing Basic Attack triggers a follow-up plunge attack, regardless of whether Yao is airborne or grounded. This follow-up also counts as Resonance Liberation damage and grants three stacks of Performance Capacity.
Performance Capacity is a separate resource capped at five stacks. Yao gains stacks by hitting enemies with abilities during his Resonance Liberation. When five stacks are present, his Resonance Skill changes again, this time into Law of Reigns. Casting Law of Reigns consumes all Performance Capacity stacks and one Hypercube to deal Electro damage counted as Resonance Liberation damage. Like Decipher, Law of Reigns can be followed by a Basic Attack that consumes all 100 Capacity points to perform a plunge attack. That follow-up also counts as Resonance Liberation damage and grants three stacks of Performance Capacity.
His Resonance Liberation, the Intuition state, is the engine that ties everything together. Activating it deals Electro damage and grants Yao three Hypercubes to fuel Law of Reigns. While Intuition is active, his Basic and Heavy Attacks are replaced by Pivot - Impale, a shortened three-hit chain that ignores the normal Basic Attack skill node. Each hit grants one or two stacks of Performance Capacity. His Dodge Counter is replaced by Unfathomed, which deals Resonance Liberation damage and grants two stacks. His Resonance Skill becomes Divergence, dealing Electro Resonance Skill damage and granting two stacks. Intuition ends after Yao uses all three Hypercubes through Law of Reigns or after 24 seconds pass.
Yao's Intro Skill has him deliver two Electro strikes to a target. His Outro Skill is more interesting: when the next Resonator lands a Basic Attack, Yao calls down a laser beam on the first target struck, dealing Electro damage in an area of effect. This can happen up to three times with a two-second cooldown between triggers.
His inherent skills are practical without being flashy. Knowing increases his Electro DMG Bonus by 5% for 8 seconds whenever he casts any Resonance Skill, stacking up to 20%. Focus grants him interruption resistance while his Resonance Liberation is active. These passives reinforce his role as a stable, sustained damage dealer who does not need to dodge-cancel constantly to survive.
| State | Trigger | Damage Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decipher | Full Forte Circuit | Resonance Liberation DMG | Follow-up plunge grants 3 Performance Capacity |
| Law of Reigns | 5 Performance Capacity + 1 Hypercube | Resonance Liberation DMG | Follow-up plunge consumes 100 Capacity and grants 3 stacks |
| Divergence | During Intuition | Resonance Skill DMG | Grants 2 Performance Capacity |
| Pivot - Impale | During Intuition, Basic/Heavy attack | Basic-chain replacement | 3-hit chain, grants 1-2 stacks |
| Unfathomed | During Intuition, Dodge Counter | Resonance Liberation DMG | Grants 2 Performance Capacity |
The four-star lineup on Yao's banner included Danjin, Aalto, and Yuanwu. Danjin stood out as a strong Havoc option, capable of acting as a budget main DPS or a sub-DPS alongside Havoc Rover. Yuanwu had a niche with Jinhsi through Coordinated Attacks, but outside of that his damage and utility were mediocre. Aalto struggled the most, with low individual output and few teammates who wanted his Outro buff.
The accompanying four-star weapons were Marcato, Helios Cleaver, and Novaburst. Helios Cleaver was the best of the three due to its broad usefulness across sword users. Marcato felt like a support gauntlet searching for a problem, offering Concerto Energy and Energy Regen in a meta where gauntlet users preferred offense or Originite: Type IV. Novaburst looked strong on paper but demanded constant dodge refreshes for a short buff, making it less comfortable than Undying Flame with minimal damage loss.
Should players have pulled on Xiangli Yao's banner? For most, the answer was no. Yao was free from the Moon-Chasing Festival event, and his kit was fully functional at zero duplicates. There was no hidden constellation-style lockout. The only real temptation was his signature weapon, which at the time was the only Crit Rate% gauntlet besides Stonard and offered All-Element DMG Bonus with a conditional Resonance Liberation DMG Bonus. The condition was tied specifically to Yao's duration-based Liberation, so it did not work for everyone. Even so, it remained a solid stat stick.
Adding pressure to player wallets, version 1.3 beta news confirmed that The Shorekeeper, a healer and buffer support unit, would arrive in the first half of the next patch. At that point, saving pulls for a missing support archetype made more sense than spending on a free DPS's duplicates.
Xiangli Yao's legacy in 2026 is not just about raw damage. He showed that free event characters could powercreep a standard five-star like Calcharo and still carry half a patch's story, lore, and gameplay polish. As always, the final advice remains the same: spend responsibly and never use building pity as an excuse for gambling. ⚡