Jing Yuan vs Sparkle: Which 5-star should you pick in Honkai Star Rail 2.0?

The second phase of Honkai Star Rail 2.0 will feature the limited-time banners of Sparkle and Jing Yuan simultaneously. Sparkle is the second limited-time Harmony character of this title who excels in buffing her allies. As the second phase houses two banners, players may wonder which 5-star character to choose and summon in the upcoming Honkai Star Rail 2.0.

This article details both of the 5-star character’s abilities and discusses whom you should pull for.

---

Jing Yuan’s kit in Honkai Star Rail 2.0

Jing Yuan (Image via HoYoverse)

Below is a list detailing Jing Yuan’s abilities in Honkai Star Rail:

• Basic Attack: Unleashes an attack that deals Lightning DMG to an opponent.
• Skill: Launches an attack that deals Lightning damage to all enemies and increases Lightning-Lord’s Hits Per Action by three.
• Ultimate: Deals Lightning damage to all adversaries and increases Lightning-Lord’s Hits Per Action by three for the following turn.
• Passive Talent: Jing Yuan summons Lightning-Lord at the start of a battle. Lightning-Lord’s base SPD is 60 and when it takes action, its attacks are considered as follow-up attacks. Lightning-Lord’s Hits Per Action can reach a maximum number of 10, and each time Lightning-Lord’s Hits Per Action increases, its SPD increases by 10.
• When Jing Yuan is Struck with a killing blow, Lightning-Lord will disappear.
• If Jing Yuan is affected by a crowd control debuff, Lightning-Lord can also not take action.
• Technique: Upon activation, Lightning-Lord’s Hits Per Action gets boosted by three at the beginning of the following fight.

---

Sparkle’s abilities in Honkai Star Rail 2.0

Sparkle (Image via HoYoverse)

Sparkle’s abilities are detailed in the following section:

• Basic Attack: Launches an attack that deals Quantum damage to an adversary.
• Skill: Upon activation, Sparkle boosts an ally’s CRIT DMG for a single turn while also Advancing their turn by 50% simultaneously.
• Ultimate: Sparkle grants all allies Cipher and replenishes four Skill Points. When her party members trigger her Passive Talent’s damage boost effect, each stack additionally increases its effectiveness by 12% for two turns.
• Passive Talent: Increases the Skill Point number by two when Sparkle is on the battlefield. When an ally uses a Skill Point, it boosts all allies’ DMG for two turns.
• Technique: Sparkle grants Stealth to all allies. Characters cannot be detected by opponents when Stealth is active and recovers three skill points simultaneously.

---

Jing Yuan vs. Sparkle: Which 5-star should you pick in Honkai Star Rail 2.0?

Picking Sparkle in Honkai Star Rail 2.0 is a no-brainer as when compared to Jing Yuan, Sparkle’s kit and her ability to adapt to any team composition is simply better. Even though the two characters specialize in dissimilar fields due to their affiliation to different Paths, Sparkle is simply the better choice as her kit allows her to provide various buffs to her party members while also regenerating Skill Points for them simultaneously.

If you have DPS characters such as Dan Heng Imbibitor Lunae, Blade, Topaz & Numby, and Jingliu, Sparkle is a must-pull, as her synergy with these DPS units is excellent.

On the other hand, Jing Yuan, as a 5-star character, deals significant damage but falls behind when compared to other DPS characters such as Dan Heng Imbibitor Lunae, Jingliu, and Blade. Though Jing Yuan can be useful in some situations, it is not worth summoning him and spending your Stellar Jades.