This is because his personal damage is underwhelming compared to other Cryo units, and his extra utility isn’t valuable outside of his niche. Still, Chongyun is a viable unit in most teams that need Cryo – namely, Melt, Freeze, and Vaporize teams. Note: This is about meta only. If you like Chongyun regardless of his power level, don’t let this stop you from playing him.
Pros & Cons
Chongyun Strengths
Chongyun’s skill infuses the polearm/claymore/sword of any character inside its field. This is a really unique source of Cryo application that serves as Chongyun’s niche. He’s great in any team that needs Cryo application, not just damage. This is especially true when facing Abyss Lectors and their shields. Chongyun’s easily accessible Cryo infusion lets you run any team with him as the last slot – there’s no need to spend resources or invest in him. Just his skill is enough. For instance, you can easily run a Xiao team with Xiao, Sucrose, Zhongli, and Chongyun. Most of the damage will still be dealt by Xiao. You’ll only use Chongyun when it’s time to break the Abyss Lector’s shield. Building Chongyun gives a bit more damage, but it’s never needed. Chongyun has a really rare cooldown reduction ability at C2. Elemental skills and bursts cast inside his skill’s Frost Field have their cooldown decreased by 15%. This is generally a nice quality-of-life buff that lets you shorten your rotations or increase skill/burst uptime. However, there aren’t any teams that need this utility. It’s nice to have but often not worth a team slot.
Chongyun Weaknesses
Chongyun deals relatively lower personal damage than most of his fellow 4-star Cryo DPS units – namely, Kaeya (a free unit) and Rosaria. Because of this, it’s always optimal to just use one of the two if you don’t need Chongyun’s Cryo infusion. Plus Chongyun falls far behind other Main DPS Cryo units like Ayaka and Ganyu – he’s just never the best choice for damage. One of the most important roles of an off-field Cryo DPS unit is as a battery. This lets them charge energy-hungry Cryo teammates like Eula and Ayaka. However, Chongyun has a very average energy generation. So this paired with his lower personal DPS makes him fall behind other options. It’s simply optimal to go with a unit that has similar or higher energy generation and higher damage output. Still, Chongyun definitely works – just worse. Aside from his niche role, Chongyun very often competes with other Cryo units. Here’s a deeper look at him vs relevant Cryo characters.
Are Chongyun’s Constellations Good?
Chongyun has pretty average constellations. He’s a perfectly functional unit at C0, his constellations just slightly buff his utility and damage. It’s generally recommended to pull until his C2 when using him as a support, and until C6 when using him as a DPS. His C2 has his cooldown reduction ability, while C6 is his biggest personal damage gain from cons. You’ll also naturally get his constellations when pulling in any gacha banner, so here’s a closer look at each one.
C1: Ice Unleashed
The last attack of Chongyun’s normal attack string deals 3 additional instances of Cryo damage. This is equal to 50% of his ATK. This can be another source of Cryo application, but it’s generally less recommended. It takes too long to trigger because of Chongyun’s slow normal attack animations. The damage gained from this effect is simply not enough to justify using his entire normal attack string.
C2: Atmospheric Revolution
Elemental skills and bursts cast within the Frost Field created by Chongyun’s skill decrease their cooldown by 15% This is Chongyun’s best constellation as a support. C2 offers a very rare utility of cooldown reaction, which is appreciated in most teams. It can essentially shorten or smoothen his team’s rotations.
C3: Cloudburst
Increases his elemental burst talent level by 3. This is a decent, unconditional damage increase – which is always appreciated.
C4: Frozen Skies
Chongyun regenerates 1 energy every time he hits an enemy affected by Cryo. This can occur once every 2s. This is a nice quality-of-life upgrade that further decreases his already-low energy requirements. It makes it easier to charge his burst off-cooldown.
C5: The True Path
Increases his elemental skill talent level by 3. This is a small damage gain that’s always appreciated in a DPS or sub-DPS build.
C6: Rally of Four Blades
Chongyun’s burst deals 15% more damage to opponents with a lower percentage of their max HP remaining than Chongyun. It will also summon an additional spirit blade. This is DPS Chongyun’s best constellation. It provides a significant damage increase – the biggest one among all his constellations.
