Genshin Impact Best Characters Tier List [July 2025]

Welcome to LDShop’s detailed Genshin Impact 5.7 Tier list with Skirk in S+, where we evaluate the top-performing characters to help you tackle the game’s most difficult challenges. Each character is ranked according to their performance in various roles, including Main DPS, Sub DPS and support.

Let’s go ahead and take a closer look at the table below.

Genshin Impact 5.7 Tier List

Some characters appear more than once on our Tier List, as they are just that versatile! Many support characters can contribute off-field damage or apply elements while staying safely on the sidelines. But to maintain clarity and focus, we have only included multi-role listings when the character demonstrates a strong performance in each role.

	Main DPS	Sub DPS	Support
S+	Arlecchino Mavuika Neuvillette Skirk	Escoffier Furina Mavuika Nahida Xiangling Xingqiu	Bennett Citlali Furina Nahida Xilonen Zhongli
S	Varesa Mualani Kinich Chasca Gaming Navia	Emilie Raiden Shogun Fischl Chiori Yae Miko Ororon	Escoffier Chevreuse Raiden Shogun Xianyun Baizhu Mona
A	Cyno Diluc Ganyu Raiden Shogun Tartaglia Xiao	Collei Mona Rosaria Sucrose Venti Yae Miko	Lan Yan Yaoyao Charlotte Layla Ifa Yun Jin
B	Keqing Noelle Sethos Wanderer Yanfei Yoimiya	Albedo Kachina Lynette Thoma Anemo Traveler Zhongli	Barbara Kirara Mika Sayu Sigewinne Thoma
C	Freminet Kaveh Klee Ningguang Shikanoin Heizou Yumemizuki Mizuki	Beidou Chongyun Dehya Kachina Kaeya Lisa	Candace Dori Electro Traveler Qiqi Rosaria Sigewinne

Tier lists offer a helpful snapshot of how characters perform relative to others within their roles, but it is important to remember that every Genshin is viable with enough investment regardless their ranking. Chase the character that sparks joy, not just the top tiers—fun lies in what you love! 

 

Genshin Impact 5.7 Changes and Additions

Version 5.7 enriches the Genshin Impact experience with compelling new characters, challenging gameplay modes, and meaningful system enhancement. Below are the most recent changes in patch 5.7, which focuses on the release of Skirk and Dahlia.

Character	Explanation
Skirk	Skirk is the latest powerful Cryo DPS, who delivers impressive damages. Skirk is a fluid DPS that is easy to control and Overworld-friendly. Since she does not require Energy, as long as her Freeze-focused talents are met, her rotation and damage potential remain consistently available. If you have Escoffier on your account, Skirk stands out as one of the meta-defining DPS alongside Mavuika. Without Escoffier, she may not be as game-changing, but she remains reliable since her rotations and team setups largely stay consistent.
Dahlia	Dahlia is our first Hydro shield provider and his ATK SPD buff is slightly less than Mika at C0 unless you have Dahlia's C6. His Elemental Burst shield is refreshable, but to maximize its benefits, he is best used in specialized Freeze team compositions. His Elemental Skill and Hydro application offers little value since he lacks any meaningful off-field application. Dahlia provides low DMG due to split scaling and limited elemental application, making him at best a side grade—and often a downgrade--compared to other options. Unless Dahlia is intended only as a F2P support for Skirk rather than a precursor to a future character’s support, he is unlikely to be widely used.

 

Strongest Cryo DPS: Skirk

Skirk is a Cryo main DPS character introduced in the first half of Version 5.7. Even at C0, she performs at full strength. While she does have specific team synergy requirements, her current power level rivals that of Vulkan. She is a top recommendation for players who do not have suitable damage dealer.

Skirk is a flexible DPS capable of maintaining sustained attacks or swiftly shifting playstyles to eliminate enemies. Her toolkit is entirely damage-oriented, offering minimal to no support utility.

As a primary DPS, Skirk uses the "Snake's Cunning" mechanic—her Elemental Skill generates stacks of this resource, which are then consumed by her burst to unleash powerful AoE Cryo damage.

Here is the list of Skirk’s skills:

• Normal attack: five-stage continuous slash, performs up to five consecutive slashes with her weapon.
• Elemental skill: Snake’s Cunning

--Tap: Generates Snake’s Cunning (up to 45 points)

--Hold: Consumes stamina to throw a spinning Cryo spear

--Gains additional effects when under the “Seven Phases Flash” state

• Elemental Burst – Severance: consumes all Snake’s Cunning to unleash rapid Cryo slashes in an area. Each point of Snake’s Cunning boosts the damage, up to 12 stacks.

When in “Seven Phases Flash” mode, this ability is replaced by Ultimate Skill: Exhaustion with altered effects.

• Clone Mechanic: Skirk creates a Cryo-based done that counts as an additional unit on the field, enabling flexible elemental reactions like Freeze and Melt.
• Tier Placement: SS-tier with Escoffier/S-tier without. Skirk heavily relies on Escoffier to reach the damage benchmarks expected of a 5.X-era DPS

Skirk shines in Hydro-Cryo team comps (especially with Furina and Arlecchino), where her Cryo application and burst damage are amplified by consistent Freeze uptime and reaction bonuses.

Skirk delivers the highest raw damage among all Cryo characters, and excels in both quick-swap burst roles and sustained on-field combat. With her ability to deal consistent and explosive damage, Skirk is an exceptionally well-rounded field DPS.

 

Conclusion

While tier lists offer a general guide to each character’s performance in various roles, remember that every unit can shine with the right investment and team synergy. Use this list as a reference, not a restriction.

Regarding Skirk. She is a powerful DPS who shines in Hydro-Cryo team compositions. Even at C0, paired with Arlecchino and Furina, she can tackle top-tier challenges in Genshin Impact 5.7, including the Vulkan and Dragon King Realms.

If you do not have a strong Cryo DPS, Skirk is a top pick and performs excellently even at her base constellation. Eyeing Skirk? Head to LDShop for your Genshin top-up—snag her smoothly! 

The List Overview Criteria

S+	Characters that stand out as top performers within their ideal team compositions, with the added advantage of long-term meta relevance. These units consistently dominate endgame content when placed in their best setups.
S	Characters that achieve near-maximum performance with standard amount of investment. While there's limited room for improvement, they are more than capable of clearing all content with ease.
A	Characters who require full investment- including artifacts, weapons, team comps and constellations- to reach performance comparable to top-tier units. This level of commitment marks the threshold for the strongest in their respective roles.
B	Characters who perform reliably in their designated roles and excel within particular team setups, though their impact is limited when used solo.
C	Characters who fulfill their role adequately but are easily outclassed because of underwhelming talent scaling stats, or limitations from long cooldowns and high energy costs.

Role Breakdown

Main DPS	A character who spends most of the battle actively on-field, delivering significant damage. They serve as the team’s primary damage dealer -- often acting as the hypercarry, main driver, or elemental reaction initiator. Their damage output mainly comes from prolonged on-field presence, typically appearing as the last unit in team’s rotation.
Sub DPS	Characters who are good at applying elements to trigger powerful reactions or deal significant off-field damage. The provide valuable utility by supporting the Main DPS with elemental setups while contributing their own damage. This includes units whose talents remain active after they switch out and those designed for quick-swap team compositions.
Support	Healers, Shielders and buffers who primarily provide supportive utility to the team. They may deal some off-field damage, their main role is to offer buffs, shields, healing or crowd control through their Elemental Skills, Bursts or passive talents. These characters are typically played off-field and can apply elemental effects, though not primarily for damage.