Understanding Elation Path Materials and Prefarm Strategy
Yao Guang (5-star Physical support, Phase 1) and Sparxie (5-star Fire DPS, Phase 2) share core trace materials: Whimsy Wax, Dreamweave Steel, Lucid Awl, and The Fluffy series items unique to Elation progression.
Universal materials—Character EXP books, Credits, weekly boss drops—remain accessible throughout Version 3.8 (ends February 12, 2026). Character-specific ascension materials require farming specific Stagnant Shadow domains available now.
Players preparing for HSR Oneiric Shard recharge should prioritize material farming over immediate pulls, as BitTopup offers competitive rates while materials require time-gated Trailblaze Power investment.
Maxed traces require 139 Collector's Edition pieces and 41 Whimsy Wax per character.
Critical Prefarm Timeline
Version 3.8's 58 days (December 16, 2025 start) provides 13,920 Trailblaze Power through natural regeneration (240 daily) plus 1,000 from weekly Condensed Aether storage. That's 464 domain runs at 30 Power each.
Daily regeneration supports 8 domain runs without refills. Balance ascension materials (Stagnant Shadows), trace materials (Calyx domains), and weekly boss clears.
Complete Yao Guang Material Requirements
Ascension (Level 1-80):
- Invasive Clot: 65 pieces (Stagnant Shadow: Shape of Deepsheaf, Dragonbone City, Styxia)
- Whimsy Wax: 15 pieces
- Dreamweave Steel: 15 pieces
- Lucid Awl: 15 pieces
- Credits: 308,000
Each Stagnant Shadow run costs 30 Power, drops 2-4 materials. Requires 22-33 runs for full stock.
Trace Upgrades (Maximum Levels):
- Tracks of Destiny: 8-10 pieces
- The Fluffy Hand-drawn Storyboards: 18 pieces
- The Fluffy Serialization Memorial Issue: 69 pieces
- The Fluffy Collector's Edition: 139 pieces
- Whimsy Wax: 41 total (26 beyond ascension)
- Dreamweave Steel: 56 total
- Lucid Awl: 50-58 pieces
- Vanquished Flow's Reticence: 12-15 pieces (Rusted Crypt weekly boss)
- Credits: 3,000,000
Yao Guang Trace Priority
Skill > Talent > Ultimate > Basic Attack
Skill generates Zone mechanic producing 3 Punchlines (3 turns) while increasing team Elation by 15-20%. Talent enhances Zone effectiveness. Ultimate and Basic Attack provide diminishing returns. This priority achieves 80% effectiveness with 60% material investment.
Complete Sparxie Material Requirements
Ascension (Level 1-80):
- Radiant Prominence: 65 pieces (Stagnant Shadow: Shape of Ashes, Sanctum of Prophecy, Janusopolis)
- Whimsy Wax: 15 pieces
- Dreamweave Steel: 15 pieces
- Lucid Awl: 15 pieces
- Traveler's Guide: 289 books
- Adventure Log: 3 books
- Travel Encounters: 3 books
- Credits: 308,000
Trace Upgrades (Maximum Levels):
- Tracks of Destiny: 8 pieces
- The Fluffy Hand-drawn Storyboards: 14-18 pieces
- The Fluffy Serialization Memorial Issue: 53-69 pieces
- The Fluffy Collector's Edition: 104-139 pieces
- Whimsy Wax: 33-41 total
- Dreamweave Steel: 49-56 pieces
- Lucid Awl: 28-58 pieces
- Vanquished Flow's Reticence: 12 pieces
- Credits: 2,260,000-3,000,000
Sparxie Trace Priority
Talent > Skill > Ultimate > Basic Attack
Talent governs BIKURI stack mechanics and Mode transitions. Mode 1 ignores 100% DEF; Mode 3 delivers AoE damage at 50+ BIKURI stacks. Skill upgrades (4/8/12 SP costs) enhance stack generation. Ultimate provides burst but scales less effectively.
Shared Material Farming Strategy
Combined requirements for both characters:
- The Fluffy Collector's Edition: 243-278 pieces
- Whimsy Wax: 74-82 pieces
- Dreamweave Steel: 105-112 pieces
- Lucid Awl: 78-116 pieces
Garden of Plenty enables 1:1 material exchanges for Elation items. Convert excess Harmony/Destruction materials into needed Whimsy Wax, Dreamweave Steel, and Lucid Awl.
Weekly boss farming: Rusted Crypt of the Iron Carcass (Memortis Shore, Ruins of Time). 3 extractions weekly at 30 Power each. Accumulate 24-30 pieces during prefarm for both characters.
Credit and EXP Stockpiling
Maxing one character: 3,308,000 Credits minimum. Dual preparation: 6.6+ million Credits.
Credit sources:
- Calyx: Bud of Treasures (40 Power, ~60,000 Credits)
- Daily assignments (20,000-40,000)
- Simulated Universe bonuses
- Event rewards
EXP requirements: 289 Traveler's Guides, 3 Adventure Logs, 3 Travel Encounters per character. Calyx: Bud of Memories drops 8-12 Traveler's Guides per run (40 Power).
For extensive pulls, secure resources through Honkai Star Rail top up Oneiric Shards via BitTopup while Trailblaze Power focuses on time-gated farming.
Farmable vs Non-Farmable Materials Before 4.0
Currently Farmable
Stagnant Shadow domains: Radiant Prominence and Invasive Clot available throughout Version 3.8. Highest prefarm priority—required for Level 20/40/50/60/70/80 ascensions. Stockpile 65 pieces per character.
Weekly boss materials: Vanquished Flow's Reticence from Echoes of War. 3 weekly extractions (30 Power each) yield 1-2 pieces per run. Eight weeks produces 24-48 pieces, exceeding dual-character needs.
Universal materials:
- All Character EXP books (Calyx: Bud of Memories)
- Credits (Calyx: Bud of Treasures)
- Tracks of Destiny (weekly bosses)
- Existing Calyx materials for Garden of Plenty exchanges
Locked Until 4.0
The Fluffy series: Hand-drawn Storyboards, Serialization Memorial Issues, Collector's Editions unavailable until Version 4.0 Calyx domains launch. Cannot prefarm.
Path-specific Calyx materials: Whimsy Wax, Dreamweave Steel, Lucid Awl require new domain access. Direct farming begins February 12-13, 2026.
Day 1 players achieve Level 80 ascension immediately with proper prefarm but must farm traces progressively. Full trace maxing: 3-5 days post-launch with dedicated farming.
Optimal Trailblaze Power Allocation
Daily Farming Priority
240 daily Power = 8 domain runs (30 Power each).
Week 1-4 (December 16 - January 13):
- Stagnant Shadow: 4 runs daily (120 Power) for Radiant Prominence/Invasive Clot
- Weekly bosses: 3 extractions Monday-Wednesday (90 Power weekly)
- Calyx: Bud of Memories: 2 runs daily (80 Power) for EXP
- Calyx: Bud of Treasures: 2 runs daily (80 Power) for Credits
Week 5-7 (January 14 - February 4):
- Continue Stagnant Shadow if under 65 pieces
- Increase Credit farming to 4 runs daily once ascension secured
- Maintain weekly bosses
- Begin relic farming if universal materials meet targets
Week 8 (February 5-12):
- Inventory audit and gap filling
- Relic optimization for supports
- Reserve 200+ Power as Condensed Aether for launch day
Trailblaze Power Refill Analysis
Daily refills: 50 Stellar Jade for 60 Power (2 runs). Over 58 days: 2,900 Stellar Jade for 116 extra runs, accelerating accumulation by 25%.
Refills worth it when:
- Targeting both characters (doubled requirements)
- Limited playtime restricts daily farming
- Aiming for Day 1 competitive performance
- Stellar Jade reserves exceed 180 pulls
Skip refills with tight budgets—natural regeneration suffices for single-character prep.
Relic and Light Cone Preparation
Tengoku Relic Set
Tengoku: 2-piece +16% CRIT DMG, 4-piece +32% CRIT DMG after 3 turns at ≥3 SP consumption. Farm Caverns of Corrosion or Simulated Universe World 3+ (40-100 Power per run).
Target 50+ pieces weekly:
- Caverns: 40 Power, guaranteed 2-3 relics
- Simulated Universe: 100 Energy, 30-50 completions during prefarm
Yao Guang specs:
- Body: CRIT DMG%
- Feet: SPD (120-160 breakpoint)
- Sphere: Physical DMG%
- Rope: Energy Regen Rate
- Substats: CRIT DMG > CRIT Rate > SPD > Effect Hit Rate
- Targets: 70%+ CRIT Rate, 150%+ CRIT DMG, 130-150% Energy Regen, 120-160 SPD
Sparxie specs:
- 120-140 SPD
- 70%+ CRIT Rate
- 180%+ CRIT DMG
- 2,800+ ATK
- 180%+ Elation stat
Signature Light Cones
Yao Guang's When She Decided To See: CRIT DMG +36%, +1 Skill Point limit per Elation character (max 3), ignores 5% DEF per SP consumed.
Leveling to 80 requires:
- The Fluffy Hand-drawn Storyboards: 4 pieces
- The Fluffy Serialization Memorial Issue: 12 pieces
- The Fluffy Collector's Edition: 15 pieces
- Whimsy Wax: 20 pieces
- Dreamweave Steel: 20 pieces
- Lucid Awl: 14 pieces
- Credits: 385,000
Sparxie's signature follows identical requirements. Add these to character totals: +31 Fluffy pieces, +54 Calyx materials per weapon.
Advanced Inventory Management
Material Organization
Tier S (Farm Now, Use Immediately):
- Radiant Prominence/Invasive Clot (65 each)
- Character EXP books (289+ Traveler's Guides per character)
- Credits (6.6+ million for dual prep)
- Vanquished Flow's Reticence (24-30 pieces)
Tier A (Farm Now, Use Progressively):
- Tracks of Destiny (16-18 total)
- Existing Calyx materials for Garden exchanges
- Relic fodder
Tier B (Cannot Farm, Plan Post-Launch):
- The Fluffy series (all tiers)
- Whimsy Wax, Dreamweave Steel, Lucid Awl
- New world exploration materials
Team Composition Planning
Yao Guang synergy:
- High SP-generating supports
- CRIT DMG buffers
- Physical RES shredders
Sparxie synergy:
- Consistent SP feeders for Mode transitions
- DEF ignore amplifiers
- Fire DMG% buffers
Prefarm materials for existing supports (Bronya, Tingyun, Pela). Allocate 10-15% Power to support optimization during final weeks if primary targets meet thresholds.
Common Prefarm Mistakes
Overfarming Low-Priority Materials
Don't stockpile Basic Attack materials—lowest priority. Sparxie's Basic Attack gets final upgrades after Talent/Skill/Ultimate max. Avoid overinvesting in low-tier Fluffy items while neglecting Credits.
Optimal distribution: 70% ascension materials and Credits, 20% weekly boss materials and EXP books, 10% relic optimization.
Ignoring Regional Launch Times
Version 4.0 launches:
- NA: February 12, 2026, 10:00 PM UTC-5
- Asia/TW/HK/MO: February 13, 2026, 11:00 AM UTC+8
- EU: February 13, 2026, 4:00 AM UTC+1
Asia servers gain 13-hour head start. Coordinate final Power expenditure with regional launch for maximum efficiency.
Neglecting Condensed Aether Storage
Max storage: 5 units = 200 Power. Full storage + natural regeneration = 440+ Power immediately for new domains. Enables 14+ Calyx runs Day 1.
Begin storage accumulation 48 hours pre-launch by reducing daily runs.
FAQ
What trace materials do Elation characters need in HSR 4.0? The Fluffy series (Hand-drawn Storyboards, Serialization Memorial Issues, Collector's Editions) plus Whimsy Wax, Dreamweave Steel, Lucid Awl. Yao Guang needs 139 Collector's Editions and 41 Whimsy Wax; Sparxie requires 104-139 Collector's Editions and 33-41 Whimsy Wax.
Can I prefarm Yao Guang ascension materials now? Yes. Invasive Clot drops from Stagnant Shadow: Shape of Deepsheaf (Dragonbone City, Styxia) at 30 Power per run. Farm 65 pieces during Version 3.8 for complete Level 1-80 prep. Credits and EXP books also farmable now.
Which weekly boss drops materials for Elation characters? Rusted Crypt of the Iron Carcass (Memortis Shore, Ruins of Time) drops Vanquished Flow's Reticence. Both characters need 12-15 pieces for maxed traces. Complete 3 weekly extractions at 30 Power each.
What materials should I NOT farm before HSR 4.0? The Fluffy series and Elation Calyx materials (Whimsy Wax, Dreamweave Steel, Lucid Awl) remain locked until Version 4.0. Focus on ascension materials, Credits, EXP books, and weekly boss drops.
How many credits do I need to max a new character? 3,308,000 Credits per character (308,000 ascension + 3,000,000 traces). Both characters: 6.6+ million. Farm Calyx: Bud of Treasures at 40 Power per run (~60,000 Credits per completion).
Is it worth using stamina refills for 4.0 prefarm? Refills cost 50 Stellar Jade for 60 Power. Daily refills over 58 days: 2,900 Stellar Jade for 116 extra runs (25% acceleration). Worth it for dual-character prep with 180+ pulls banked. Skip if prioritizing gacha budget.
