Honkai: Star Rail 2.1 banners: Acheron, Aventurine, and Gallagher debut

Every new and returning character coming with the update

Author:
Marco Wutz
Publish date:
Mar 16, 2024 8:15 AM EDT

The Honkai: Star Rail update 2.1 release date is just around the corner now that version 2.0 is nearing its end. Bringing the next chapter of the Penacony story and the game’s first anniversary, players can look forward to new playable characters in the upcoming patch as well.

Version 2.1 has three fresh faces in store, though we’ve met all of them as part of the story already – albeit very briefly, in one case. There is Acheron, the mysterious warrior who may or may not be the Emanator of an Aeon. There is Aventurine, a gambler from the IPC both clever and reckless. Finally, there is Gallagher, a member of the Bloodhound Family on Penacony with the worldly attitude of a barkeeper.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Honkai: Star Rail 2.1 character and Light Cone banners.

Honkai: Star Rail update 2.1 banner characters Acheron, Aventurine, and Gallagher on a collage of artwork. — Acheron, Aventurine, and Gallagher are coming to the game in update 2.1.
HoYoverse

Honkai: Star Rail 2.1 banners: Phase 1

Starting on March 27, 2024, with update 2.1’s release, you’ll be able to call upon the following characters:

Acheron (5-Star character, Lightning, The Nihility), Gallagher (4-Star character, Fire, The Abundance), Pela (4-Star character, Ice, The Nihility), and Dan Heng (4-Star character, Wind, The Hunt).
Luocha (5-Star character, Imaginary, The Abundance), Gallagher (4-Star character, Fire, The Abundance), Pela (4-Star character, Ice, The Nihility), and Dan Heng (4-Star character, Wind, The Hunt).
Along the Passing Shore (5-Star Light Cone, The Nihility) and three 4-Star Light Cones.
Echoes of the Coffin (5-Star Light Cone, The Abundance) and three 4-Star Light Cones.

Acheron

Acheron may follow The Nihility and gain some bonuses from being accompanied by other units of this Path, but she plays more like a Destruction character, relying on direct attacks. Unlike any other characters in the game so far, she doesn’t have Energy and can only unleash her Ultimate after reaching a certain amount of status effect stacks. Her Technique can insta-kill regular foes in the overworld, making her perfect for quick Simulated Universe runs.

Luocha

Luocha is a powerful healer, as he’ll automatically assist characters falling under a certain HP threshold and can activate a passive healing field, allowing everyone to restore HP by attacking. This makes him very light on Skill Point consumption and perfect for aggressive teams.

Gallagher

Gallagher is another aggressive type of healer. Though he has a Skill that restores the HP of allies directly, his Ultimate inflicts a status effect on all enemies, which debuffs them and will restore the health of anyone attacking them. He also has an Enhanced Basic Attack, which provides healing to all allies if he attacks an enemy under this special status effect with it.

Pela

Pela is a powerful support character, who can debuff enemies and has become an integral part of many team compositions.

Dan Heng

Dan Heng is a middling damage dealer against single targets.

Honkai: Star Rail 2.1 banners: Phase 2

Phase 2 will begin on April 17, 2024, and run for three weeks from that point on. You’ll be able to get the following characters in this time period:

Aventurine (5-Star character, Imaginary, The Preservation), Lynx (4-Star character, Quantum, The Abundance), Luka (4-Star character, Physical, The Nihility), and Serval (4-Star character, Lightning, The Erudition).
Jingliu (5-Star character, Ice, The Destruction), Lynx (4-Star character, Quantum, The Abundance), Luka (4-Star character, Physical, The Nihility), and Serval (4-Star character, Lightning, The Erudition).
Inherently Unjust Destiny (5-Star Light Cone, The Preservation) and three 4-Star Light Cones.
I Shall Be My Own Sword (5-Star Light Cone, The Destruction) and three 4-Star Light Cones.

Aventurine

Aventurine is a defensive powerhouse with strong offensive capabilities: He can upgrade the Shield allies receive from his Skill by repeatedly using it. Aventurine gains effect stacks when allies protected by him are attacked, allowing him to unleash powerful follow-up attacks after reaching a certain limit. His Ultimate not only deals damage, but also debuffs the target. The man’s a Swiss Army Knife and will synergize especially well with other follow-up attackers.

Jingliu

Jingliu is all about dishing out damage: Using her Skill to gain stacks of Syzygy, she can enter a special state that enables her to unleash an Enhanced Skill to attack several foes at once. It’s a great idea to have a healer in any team with her, though, as she’ll sap everyone’s HP whenever she uses her destructive powers. As this enhances her damage, pairing her up with characters that sport high Maximum HP is a good idea.