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Kaveh Quick Guide

Updated for Version 3.6

Kaveh is a 4-star Dendro Claymore character in Genshin Impact who acts as a supportive on-field driver, especially in Bloom teams. Learn about Kaveh’s best builds, Talent priority, best weapons, best artifacts, and best teams in this in-depth review.

Note that the information given may change if new discoveries are made. More extensive testing is in progress. 

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Infographic

Kaveh Infographic


Design: cuppacote
Content: latiwings, irokei

Character Overview

Playstyles

Bloom Driver

Kaveh acts as an on-field Dendro driver for Bloom teams. His AoE Dendro application, frontloaded and buffed Bloom damage, and self-healing all make him a comfortable pick here.

Burgeon & Hyperbloom Driver

Kaveh can drive any Dendro team, not just Bloom compositions. While his utilities aren’t as useful in these teams, his consistent AoE Dendro application is a valuable asset nonetheless.

Talents

Level and Talent Priority

Talent Priority
Burst > Normal Attack > Skill

Additionally, leveling Kaveh to 90 is recommended if he is expected to have some ownership in Bloom teams. 

Talent Overview

Normal Attack

Normal Attack | Schematic Setup

Normal Attack
Uses Mehrak to perform up to 4 consecutive attacks.

Charged Attack
Drains Stamina over time to perform continuous slashes.
At the end of the sequence, performs a more powerful slash.

Plunging Attack
Plunges from mid-air to strike the ground, damaging opponents along the path and dealing AoE DMG upon impact.

Kaveh’s Normal Attacks are generally unremarkable, but he gains a Dendro Conversion upon using his Burst, allowing him to drive teammates. His range as a Claymore user allows him to deal AoE damage.

Elemental Skill

Elemental Skill | Artistic Ingenuity

Uses Mehrak’s mapping ability for offensive purposes, initiating a radial scan that deals AoE Dendro DMG. It will also scan all Dendro Cores in its AoE and cause them to immediately burst.

Kaveh’s Skill causes any Dendro Cores in the area to immediately Rupture. However, this does not mean Kaveh gains ownership of these Dendro Cores. Generally, Kaveh will be able to fit 2 – 3 Skill uses per rotation.

Note that Kaveh’s Skill has low vertical range, interfering with his ability to rupture Dendro Cores on uneven terrain.

Elemental Burst

Elemental Burst | Painted Dome

Completely unleashes Mehrak’s energy and creates a cubic scanned space, dealing AoE Dendro DMG to all opponents within it, causing all Dendro Cores in its AoE to immediately burst, and granting Kaveh the following enhanced combat abilities for a specific duration:

  • Increases Kaveh’s Normal, Charged, and Plunging Attack AoE, and converts his attack DMG to Dendro DMG that cannot be overridden.
  • All Dendro Cores created by all your own party members through Bloom reactions will deal additional DMG when they burst.
  • Increases Kaveh’s resistance to interruption

These effects will be canceled once Kaveh leaves the field.

The core of his kit, Kaveh’s Burst immediately Ruptures Dendro Cores in the area, grants him a Dendro Conversion, and increases Bloom and Bloom-related Reaction DMG. Additionally, Kaveh gains increased interruption resistance, improving his functionality as a driver.

Ascension 1 Passive

Ascension 1 Passive | An Architect’s Undertaking

When DMG dealt by a Dendro Core (including DMG from Burgeon and Hyperbloom) hits Kaveh, Kaveh will regain HP equal to 300% of his Elemental Mastery. This effect can be triggered once every 0.5s.

This healing only applies to Kaveh himself. Nevertheless, it improves his survivability — this is incredibly useful in Bloom and Burgeon teams where he acts as a driver.

Ascension 4 Passive

Ascension 4 Passive | A Craftsman’s Curious Conceptions

During Painted Dome, after Kaveh’s Normal, Charged, or Plunging Attacks hit opponents, his Elemental Mastery will increase by 25. This effect can be triggered once every 0.1s. Max 4 stacks.
This effect will be canceled when Painted Dome’s effects end.

A straightforward EM increase. This Passive only applies to Kaveh himself.

Constellations

Constellation 1

Constellation 1 | Sublime Salutations

Within 3s after using Artistic Ingenuity, Kaveh’s Dendro RES and Incoming Healing Bonus will be increased by 50% and 25% respectively.

Kaveh’s C1 is a simple survivability boost. However, it makes him an even better holder of the Ocean-Hued Clam artifact set, improving his damage output. 

Constellation 2

Constellation 2 | Grace of Royal Roads

Kaveh’s Normal Attack SPD increases by 15% during Painted Dome.

The Attack SPD provides a minor increase to Kaveh’s damage by allowing him to execute a few more converted Normal Attacks per rotation.

Constellation 3

Constellation 3 | Profferings of Dur Untash

Increases the Level of Painted Dome by 3.
Maximum upgrade level is 15.

A straightforward Burst Talent increase. Provides Kaveh with a minor increase in DPS through improving his Burst’s Bloom DMG Bonus.

Constellation 4

Constellation 4 | Feast of Apadana

Dendro Cores created from Bloom reactions Kaveh triggers will deal 60% more DMG when they burst.

Kaveh generally doesn’t trigger most of the team’s Blooms, so in practice, this isn’t an impactful Constellation. If played as solo Dendro, C4 gains more value as Kaveh gains greater Dendro Core ownership.

Constellation 5

Constellation 5 | Treasures of Bonkhanak

Increases the Level of Artistic Ingenuity by 3.
Maximum upgrade level is 15.

A straightforward Skill Talent increase, and an insignificant DPS increase for Kaveh. 

Constellation 6

Constellation 6 | Pairidaeza’s Dreams

When Kaveh’s Normal, Charged, or Plunging Attacks hit opponents during Painted Dome, they will unleash Pairidaeza’s Light upon the opponent’s position, dealing 61.8% of Kaveh’s ATK as AoE Dendro DMG and causing all Dendro Cores within that AoE to burst. This effect can be triggered once every 3s.

Kaveh’s C6 has good value in non-Nilou Bloom teams, frontloading team damage by allowing more frequent, consistent Ruptures of Dendro Cores. In Nilou teams, this Constellation doesn’t provide much due to her Bountiful Core mechanic already causing Dendro Cores to Rupture almost immediately. The additional Dendro application is greatly appreciated no matter what team you play him in.

Combos

N# = Corresponding number of consecutive Normal Attacks
E = Elemental Skill
Q = Elemental Burst
D = Dash

ComboUsage
E > Setup with supports > Q N3D Spam + 2 Es Standard Kaveh combo. 

Kaveh wants to cast his Skill three times per rotation to manage his Energy, so it’s recommended to use his Skill once near the beginning of the rotation and twice after he uses his Burst.

N3D has the highest multipliers and Dendro application of any Normal Attack combo. Although Charged Attacks look funny, they are generally not recommended because they cannot drive certain characters such as Xingqiu or Thoma.

Artifacts

ER Requirements

Kaveh’s ER Requirements differ depending on his team and his weapon.

SituationSolo DendroDouble Dendro
No Favonius procs~245%~190%
2 Favonius procs (on-field)~180%~145%
1 Favonius proc (off-field)~220%~175%
1 Sacrificial proc~205%~165%
2 Katsuragikiri Nagamasa R3 procs~205%~165%
2 Katsuragikiri Nagamasa R5 procs~170%~130%

55% CRIT Rate and 35% CRIT Rate are generally enough to proc R3 and R5 Favonius Greatsword, respectively. Sacrificial Greatsword can allow Kaveh to use his Skill 1 more time per rotation and produce extra particles for himself.

Use the Energy Recharge Calculator to determine exact requirements for your team and rotation.

Artifact Stats


Sands

Goblet

Circlet
ER or EMEMEM or CRIT Rate

Substats: ER (until requirements) > CRIT Rate (if using Favonius Greatsword) > EM >= ATK% >= CRIT Rate >= CRIT DMG

Focusing on EM is recommended to maximize healing and Bloom damage (if Kaveh has Bloom ownership). A CRIT Rate Circlet may be used if Kaveh is equipped with a Favonius Greatsword. In other teams, a combination of ER or ATK% / Dendro DMG% / CRIT Rate or CRIT DMG may be utilized, though this build’s effectiveness is yet to be determined.

Artifact Sets

Artifact SetDescription
4-piece Deepwood Memories (4DM)A generalist support set for Dendro teams; Kaveh can have full uptime on the 4-piece passive by using his Skill every 6-8s.

It is highly recommended that at least one team member holds 4DM. Thus, if Kaveh isn’t holding 4DM, another teammate should.
4-piece Ocean-Hued Clam (4OHC)Similar to 4DM at C0 and pulls ahead slightly at C1.
4-piece Instructor (4Ins)Provides a useful teamwide EM buff. As a 4-star set, 4Ins lowers Kaveh’s personal damage; however, his personal damage is rather low to begin with.
4-piece Flower of Paradise Lost (4FoPL)Functions well, but only when Kaveh has a moderate to high ownership of Blooms. 
4-piece Gilded Dreams (4GD)Also only useful when Kaveh has a moderate to high ownership of Blooms. Slightly worse than 4FoPL and has uptime issues, but may be more Resin-efficient to farm for. 
2-piece Mix and Match (20% ER/15% Dendro DMG/80 EM/18% ATK)Transitionary sets. Different sets may be useful depending on which team Kaveh is in and the role he plays. A 20% ER Bonus is almost always useful. 

Weapons

WeaponDescription
5* WeaponsGenerally all good stat sticks for personal damage. However, Kaveh’s personal DPS is generally insignificant to overall team DPS. Skyward Pride is particularly noteworthy for its ER. 
Makhaira Aquamarine / Mailed Flower / Bloodtainted GreatswordDue to their EM stat, these weapons function well when Kaveh is triggering Blooms. Makhaira Aquamarine additionally provides team members with some ATK. Mailed Flower’s passive is easy to maintain 100% uptime on and provides Kaveh with additional ATK% and EM. Bloodtainted Greatsword, despite being a 3-star, has a higher EM stat than both other weapons mentioned here. However, it’s passive provides very little. 
Favonius GreatswordFavonius Greatsword shows considerable synergy with Kaveh’s kit due to his high ER needs and his on-field playstyle. Favonius’s passive can be triggered 2-3 times per rotation. 
Forest RegaliaProvides Kaveh with much needed ER. The passive can be difficult to trigger with Kaveh, and picking up the Leaf of Consciousness may interrupt rotations. 
RainslasherEM stat stick.
Katsuragikiri NagamasaProvides Kaveh with much needed ER, but lacks the team utility of Favonius Greatsword and Forest Regalia. Furthermore, this weapon generally requires refinements to function well. 

Teams

Teambuilding

  • Kaveh has low personal damage. His teams generally revolve around him enabling them to deal reaction damage, rather than the other way around.
  • Kaveh needs to be on-field for his utilities to be useful. Therefore, his teammates will generally be off-field units.
  • Another Dendro unit makes it easier to recharge Kaveh’s Burst, but is not necessary. 
  • Kaveh can heal himself but not his teammates in Bloom or Burgeon teams. Some players might find this uncomfortable, so an extra healer is preferred.

Bloom

Kaveh Hydro Hydro Flex

Kaveh’s utilities are geared towards Bloom teams — he can drive, heal himself, buff Bloom damage, and instantly detonate Cores. Due to Bloom’s mechanics, the Hydro unit(s) will often be the reaction trigger. Depending on how much Hydro and Dendro application you have, Kaveh can still claim ownership of a few Dendro Cores here and there. The 4th slot can be a Dendro unit to supply extra Elemental application, contribute to Dendro Resonance, and provide Energy to Kaveh. Alternatively, you can use a Flex unit such as Kazuha or Sucrose to provide grouping and buffs. It is recommended to play Bloom compositions in AoE content. 

Bear in mind that without a second Dendro character, Kaveh becomes Energy-deficient and he becomes the one triggering Blooms. You can play him as a solo Dendro, but he won’t generate many Cores anyway due to his slow Dendro application, especially before C6.

Nilou Bloom

Kaveh — Nilou — Hydro — Dendro

One of Kaveh’s best teammates is Nilou, as she makes up for his sparse Bloom detonation. His AoE Dendro DMG and ability to tank Blooms allow him to function well as a driver on her teams.

Building Nilou teams is similar to building a regular Bloom team, except you cannot use any units that aren’t Dendro or Hydro. Nilou should run full HP, and your other Hydro character should run EM. Furthermore, it is recommended to also run a second Dendro in Kaveh-Nilou teams. Kaveh is built with high EM to maximize his Bloom damage and healing. Just like regular Bloom teams, Nilou Bloom excels in AoE content.

Burgeon

Kaveh — Hydro — Pyro — Flex

Relies on a high EM Pyro unit to trigger Burgeon damage. Although Kaveh’s Burst only buffs Blooms, his self-healing and interruption resistance make him a comfortable driver for Burgeon teams. His detonations can steal Burgeons procs, but it is possible to delay your Skill and Burst casts to minimize this problem. Ideally, you’ll get both Bloom and Burgeon damage. On the other hand, his C6 procs cannot be controlled unless you literally don’t use his Normal Attacks at all. The extra Bloom damage may partially compensate for the loss of Burgeons.

Hyperbloom

Kaveh — Hydro — Electro — Flex

Relies on a high EM Electro unit to trigger Hyperbloom damage. Due to Hyperbloom’s small AoE, Kaveh will rarely be hit by them and therefore cannot heal himself. Like Burgeon, his instant ruptures from Skill/Burst/C6 procs can steal Hyperbloom procs, but that is partially mitigated by Bloom damage. Again, Kaveh doesn’t buff Hyperbloom damage.

Synergies

SlotDescription

Hydro
Xingqiu, Yelan, Kokomi, Ayato, (C6) Candace
Provides off-field Hydro application, a Hydro unit is necessary in all of Kaveh’s noteworthy teams. In Bloom teams, your Hydro units will trigger Bloom and appreciate EM stats. In Burgeon and Hyperbloom teams, they mostly enable reactions. 

Nilou
Nilou further increases Bloom damage and allows all Dendro Cores to instantly Rupture. However, you can only play her with Dendro and Hydro units for these benefits to take effect.

Pyro
Dehya, Thoma, Bennett+Kazuha
In Burgeon teams, you’ll want an off-field Pyro unit with moderate Pyro application like Thoma or Dehya. This unit uses a full EM build. 

Bennett himself doesn’t provide off-field Pyro application, but enables Kazuha as a Burgeon trigger while also acting as a healer.

Electro
Kuki Shinobu, Raiden Shogun
Raiden and Kuki are ideal for triggering Hyperblooms. As such, they run full EM builds to maximize reaction damage.

Dendro Flex
Nahida, Dendro Traveler, Collei, Yaoyao, Baizhu
Because Kaveh needs to be on-field to apply Dendro, having a second Dendro unit allows the team to trigger Blooms during his downtime. Additionally, a second Dendro unit helps manage Kaveh’s ER requirements while enabling Dendro Resonance.

Anemo Flex
Kazuha, Sucrose, Heizou, Venti
These Anemo units can group enemies, which is especially useful for Bloom. They also hold 4VV, may provide DMG% or EM buffs, and can even trigger Blooms themselves.

Example Teams

This is not a comprehensive list of teams. The inclusion or exclusion of any given team does not necessarily reflect its power level.

Bloom: Kaveh — Xingqiu — Kokomi — Kaedehara Kazuha


Bloom: Kaveh — Nahida — Yelan — Kokomi


Nilou Bloom: Kaveh — Nilou — Baizhu — Xingqiu


Burgeon: Kaveh — Thoma — Fischl — Xingqiu


Burgeon: Kaveh — Yelan — Bennett — Kaedehara Kazuha


Hyperbloom: Kaveh — Raiden Shogun — Dendro Traveler — Xingqiu


Hyperbloom: Kaveh — Kuki Shinobu — Xingqiu — Yelan

Credits

mian#8650, juko#9385, emlv#0004, fritzzes#2211, Latiwings#3308, Chasing Haze#3014, idkanonymized#4166, Seima#4597, Casdela#5121

Team images courtesy of the KQM portrait generator.

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