Since launch, Honkai: Star Rail has always been generous with free 5★ characters — and the best part? Every single one of them boasts top-tier strength that stays relevant across versions. Today, let’s take a trip down memory lane and revisit the free 5★ characters we’ve earned over the years.
★ The Trailblazer
As every player’s first character, the Trailblazer is far from a mere placeholder — it’s a genuine 5★ combat force.
Physical (Destruction) Form: Has AoE spread damage and single-target burst, plus HP recovery in the Overworld, making it a reliable helper for early-game progression.
Fire (Preservation) Form: Excels at damage mitigation, effectively helping players get through the early stage when sustain units are scarce.
Imaginary (Harmony) Form: Pioneered the Super Break system, allowing every character to become a Super Break DPS.
Ice (Remembrance) Form: Pioneered the True Damage system and offers all-around support, making it an extremely versatile support character.
With each major version, the Trailblazer unlocks a new Path and joins new team archetypes — ensuring you never lack a usable character.
★ Dr. Ratio
Dr. Ratio performed exceptionally well when he first debuted: his single-target damage was high, and his “negative score” voice lines (which taunt enemies) added a fun touch. When paired with Robin and Sparkle to form the “Dr. Ratio–Robin–Sparkle” team, he not only deals sufficient damage but also continuously refreshes Sparkle’s shield — making gameplay both powerful and smooth. However, as versions progressed and DPS characters’ stats kept rising, Dr. Ratio’s damage gradually fell behind the meta, and his usage rate declined accordingly.
★ Ruan Mei & Luocha
The first phase of the Stellar Forging Store (Astral Forging) offered a free 5★ selection: players could choose between Ruan Mei and Luocha, and also received a free Golden Essence — essentially getting either Ruan Mei or Luocha at no cost.
This choice was spot-on for both characters:
Ruan Mei: A highly versatile support. She not only fits into older Break teams and DoT teams but also adapts to new-version teams like Bai’e teams and Hanya teams.
Luocha: A versatile sustain unit with no usage threshold. He provides reliable protection in any team and gains Skill Points through fast Basic ATKs. However, the current version has higher demands for sustain units — beyond basic protection, they also need auxiliary abilities and functionality, where Luocha is slightly lacking.
If you want a more complete gaming experience, the Velox platform offers convenient top-up services to help you build your ideal team faster.
★ Archer
As a collab event-exclusive free 5★ character, Archer also let players get his exclusive Light Cone by reaching 200 pulls in Version 3.4 — many players now have Archer with a “0 Eidolon + 1 Signature Light Cone” setup. At first, many thought Archer was a high-skill-cap character, but later it turned out that in Apocalyptic Phantom mode, Archer not only has outstanding strength but also simple mechanics.
His unique “continuous Skill arrow-shooting” mechanic allows quick Boss Weakness Breaks. After breaking, whether activating Ultimate buffs or Skill Point refund buffs, it greatly benefits Archer — letting him take down an entire Boss HP bar in one go. Given how quickly 5★ DPS characters are replaced, it’s quite rare for Archer (a free character) to consistently perform well in “Deepwell” (high-difficulty content).
★ Dan Heng • Imbibitor Lunae: Resurgence
Dan Heng • Imbibitor Lunae: Resurgence represents the new generation of sustain units. He not only provides protection and boosts the DPS’s ATK but also has unique functionality — summoning a Dragon Spirit for the DPS.
Interestingly, the unit that benefits most from him isn’t a DPS, but Sunday. Previously, when Sunday supported DPS without summons, his Skill damage boost could only reach 30%; now with Dan Heng • Imbibitor Lunae: Resurgence in the team (who provides a Dragon Spirit for the DPS), Sunday’s Skill damage boost can reach a full 80%.
★ Final Thoughts
These free 5★ characters are all highly useful — especially the Trailblazer, which is almost a must-have in every version. If you want to obtain these characters and their Light Cones more easily, the Velox Recharge Platform is a great choice. It offers safe and convenient services to help you get a more complete gaming experience.
Which of these free 5★ characters are you using now? Feel free to leave a comment and share your experience!
