Sparkle and Black Swan to Get Buffed in HSR 4.0

Honkai: Star Rail players may be seeing two familiar faces rise back up the meta in Version 4.0. New buzz confirms Sparkle and Black Swan are slated for upcoming buffs, sparking fresh discussion around team comps, damage ceilings, and whether older favorites are getting a real second wind.  Exact numbers and kit changes have been confirmed, which could reshape rotation planning—especially for SP-hungry squads and DoT-centric lineups.

Why Sparkle and Black Swan Get buffed?

HoYoverse just dropped a spicy “Novaflare” notice: after Version 4.0, Sparkle (Harmony/Quantum) and Black Swan (Nihility/Wind) are slated to receive Character Enhancement. Details aren’t out yet, but the headline alone is big—limited 5★ units don’t get tuned like this often, so it feels like a very intentional “your old mains still matter” moment.

The timing also lines up neatly with 4.0’s bigger shake-up: a new playable Path, Elation, plus two new 5★ characters Yao Guang and Sparxie—and Sparxie is presented as an alternate form of Sparkle. That’s why the Sparkle buff hits different: if leak chatter is even half right about Sparxie leaning into SP-heavy turns, a stronger original Sparkle could become the easiest way to keep those rotations smooth (and yes, that’s extremely Masked Fools-coded). Sparkle mains, warm up the confetti cannons.

As for Black Swan, an enhancement could be HSR’s way of keeping DoT/debuff comps competitive as 4.x introduces new mechanics and damage profiles—better consistency, smoother stacking, or simply more payoff per turn (speculation, of course). For now: don’t panic-pull off vibes—wait for the official enhancement details, then decide whether you’re upgrading your roster or just enjoying a free power bump.

 

Sparkle Buffs

Sparkle has been a comfy “endgame glue” pick for CRIT-focused carries: she gives one ally a big CRIT DMG boost plus 50% action advance, and her Ultimate restores 4 Skill Points so your rotation doesn’t choke mid-burst.

So where do you actually run her most? Anywhere you want a carry to press buttons nonstop: classic examples include Qingque (SP variance becomes much more tolerable) and Dan Heng • Imbibitor Lunae (comfortably full-enhanced basics every turn). She also plays nicely with follow-up heavy carries because her CRIT DMG buff can persist to cover damage outside the target’s own turn.

Buff Direction

Skills

• Ult Recovers 6 SP, overflow SP will be saved
• Every SP Used by the team will apply 3% vuln to all enemies, up to 12%
• When allies with her CDMG buff use SP, Sparkle gains 1 energy
• After an ally uses 3 SP in one turn, Sparkle's next skill will not consume SP
• Always gives 45% ATK. Allies with her CDMG buff get 10% Pen

Eidolons

• E1 gives Sparkle 15% SPD for 2 turns at start of battle or after using her skill

 

Henry's Comment

These buffs push Sparkle from “comfort support” to a full-on tempo engine. She’ll smooth out Skill Point flow so SP-hungry carries can stay aggressive without bricking rotations, while also converting the team’s SP spending into real, visible damage scaling. The new energy feedback loop means her Ultimate cadence should tighten, keeping her buffs online more often in long fights. A conditional “free” Skill makes her feel less taxing to pilot and improves turn-to-turn flexibility. On top of that, she now offers a broader, more universal damage package (not just crit-focused), so she should slot into more comps and modes. The Eidolon change also makes her early battle pacing snappier, helping teams hit their first burst window faster.

 

Black Swan Buffs

Black Swan has been the poster child for modern DoT teams: her Arcana stacking is the main damage engine, and her Ultimate’s Epiphany boosts damage taken during enemy turns while letting Arcana count as multiple DoT types for interactions.

Where does she usually show up? Primarily in Double DoT cores—ideally alongside a partner who can trigger DoT outside enemy turns (Kafka is the best teammate), plus a wide-buff Harmony/Nihility flex and a sustain. She also brings real utility: her Skill applies AoE DEF Reduction, which helps the whole team’s output.

Buff Direction

Skills

• Arcana stacks are now halved when the enemies dont have Epiphany instead of being set to 1. You can overcap on stacks over 50 but those overcap stacks are guaranteed to go away after dealing dmg (including detonating) whether or not you have Epiphany.
• Epiphany vuln now applies all the time instead of just being enemy turn
• Arcana DMG always ignores 20% DEF
• Extra DoT MV during enemy turn has no Arcana requirement (wtv)
• All of Black Swan's attacks have a 65% base chance to apply 5 stacks of Arcana
• Basic, Ult and enemy entering now have 100% base chance to apply her skill DEF shred
• DMG bonus based on her EHR is now teamwide

Eidolons

• E2: ~~6~~ -> 30 arcana stacks at start of battle
• E4: E4 changes from -10% Effect RES + 8 Energy regen capped at 1 trigger per Epiphany to +20% DMG taken + 8 Energy regen at the start of each turn or on defeat (no 1-time cap)
• E6: Increases maximum stacks of Arcana by 20. Double the Arcana Black Swan applies

 

Henry's Comment

These buffs push Black Swan from a “slow-burn DoT scaler” into a much more consistent, plug-and-play threat. Arcana no longer collapses as harshly outside Epiphany, so she keeps momentum between waves and phases instead of constantly rebuilding. Vulnerability and DEF-ignoring upgrades make her damage matter across the whole rotation, not just on enemy turns, which helps off-turn detonations and faster clears. She’ll stack Arcana more reliably from any action, while near-guaranteed DEF shred and teamwide EHR scaling turn her into a stronger comp enabler, not just a DoT carry.

 

Conclusion

With Sparkle and Black Swan officially queued for Character Enhancement after Version 4.0, this is one of those rare moments where “old favorites” might genuinely get a fresh glow-up instead of slowly aging out. Until the exact changes are revealed, do yourself a favor: bookmark this page and keep an eye on LDShop, so you can catch the buff details the moment they go live and adjust your pull/build plans without missing a beat.

And if these buffs end up being the push that makes you commit to Sparkle’s tempo plays or Black Swan’s DoT dreams, it’s nice to have a “last-mile” option for your pulls. When your banner math gets spicy, LDShop can help you top up Oneiric Shard quickly and safely—so you can spend your brainpower on team comps, not checkout stress.