Physical 
Guard 
Sword Introduction
Chen Qianyu is a 5-star character in Arknights: Endfield (AKE). Chen Qianyu wields a Sword and belongs to the Guard class. Chen Qianyu also has access to the Physical element. This guide provides a comprehensive overview of Chen Qianyu's best build, including recommended Weapons, Gear pieces, Stats, and the strongest team compositions and rotations that maximize their potential.
Attributes
Pros & Cons
Pros
- ●Free Vulnerability Infliction with combo.
- ●Above average Stagger across abilities and talent.
- ●Notable personal damage for a support damage dealer.
- ●Incredibly easy to trigger Combo Skill in any Physical team.
- ●Cheap Ultimate.
- ●She’s free!
Cons
- ●Cannot consume the Vulnerability stacks she generates, forcing her to play with a character that can.
Lore
"Well, turns out I'm great at something other than martial arts. I just can't help but end up as your best operator." Chen Qianyu is an operator at Endfield Industries and a core member of the Crisis Team. From a young age, she trained in martial arts under the guidance of her mother and at Tanjian Hall. Her dedication earned her outstanding combat capabilities and a mental fortitude rarely seen among her peers. Though she has never laid eyes on the legendary Chi Xiao, she proudly upholds her self-developed Chi Xiao Swordmancy, and wields it in the name of justice. After years of roaming Talos-II alone with her sword, Chen Qianyu joined Endfield at Perlica's invitation. Her upbeat nature and fierce enthusiasm drive her to tackle every urgent challenge without hesitation.
Skill Priority
Off Field: Ultimate > Basic Attack > Battle Skill >= Combo Skill
Skills
Soaring Break
BASIC ATTACK:An attack with up to 5 sequences that deals Physical DMG. As the controlled operator, Final Strike also deals 16 Stagger.DIVE ATTACK:Basic attack performed in mid-air becomes a dive attack that deals Physical DMG to nearby enemies.FINISHER:Basic attack performed near a Staggered enemy becomes a finisher attack that deals massive Physical DMG and recovers some SP.
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| BATK SEQ 1 Multiplier | 45% |
| BATK SEQ 2 Multiplier | 54% |
| BATK SEQ 3 Multiplier | 60% |
| BATK SEQ 4 Multiplier | 68% |
| BATK SEQ 5 Multiplier | 90% |
| Finisher ATK Multiplier | 900% |
| Dive ATK Multiplier | 180% |
Ascending Strike
Performs an uppercut slash at the target enemy, dealing Physical DMG and Lift.
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| DMG Multiplier | 380% |
| Stagger | 10 |
| Lift Duration (s) | 2.5 |
Soar to the Stars
A slashing dash that passes through the target enemy and deals Physical DMG and Lift to all enemies along the way.
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| DMG Multiplier | 270% |
Blade Gale
A 7-sequence slash attack that deals Physical DMG with each sequence to the target enemy. The final slash sequence deals even more DMG.
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Cooldown | 10 |
| Slash Multiplier | 81% |
| First Strike Stagger | 15 |
| Final Strike DMG Multiplier | 1023% |
| Final Strike Stagger | 20 |
Talents
Assign to Manufacturing Cabin to grant weapon EXP material production efficiency +10/20%.
Assign to Growth Chamber to grant rare mineral growth rate +20/30%.
After hitting an enemy with skills, Chen gains ATK +4/8% for 10s. This effect can reach 5 stacks.
Interrupting the enemy's charge up deals another 5/10 Stagger.
Potentials
DMG Dealt +20% to enemies below 50% HP.
Agility +15, Physical DMG Dealt +8%.
Battle skill Ascending Strike, combo skill Soar to the Stars, and ultimate Blade Gale improved: DMG Multiplier is increased to 1.1 times the original.
Ultimate Blade Gale improved: Ultimate Energy cost -15%.
Combo skill Soar to the Stars improved: Length of cooldown -3s.
Recommended Weapons
The percentages show the performance of the weapon based on calculations, but in some cases, some Weapons might provide additional QOL that can't be quantified and it would push that weapon ahead of others in the priority (and in those cases, we would put that weapon higher).The solo percentage shows how the weapon impacts Chen Qianyu performance if you look at their damage in the vacuum, while the team percentage shows the impact of the weapon when taking into account full team, including buffs etc.
Stat 1 Boost - 9/9Agility: +124Stat 2 Boost - 9/9Physical DMG Bonus: +34.70%Passive Boost - 9/9Attack: +14.00%After the wielder deals a Physical Status, ATK +21% for 20s. Max stacks for effects of the same name: 2. Duration of each stack is counted separately. Effect only triggers once every 0.1s.
Chen's best in slot weapon ranking above all 6-stars, assuming you have it at max dupe. It performs so well not only due to having ideal passive stats but also due to its Weapon Effect, which Chen can maintain both stacks of close to indefinitely in a fight, thanks to her Combo and Battle Skill, both applying Lift and being used frequently.
Stat 1 Boost - 9/9Agility: +156Stat 2 Boost - 9/9Attack: +39.00%Passive Boost - 4/9Arts Intensity: +48For 20s after the wielder applies Originium Crystals or Solidification the wielder gains Physical DMG dealt +57.6% during the next Battle Skill or Ultimate cast. Effects of the same name cannot stack.
A powerful stat stick for Chen, which has strong enough passives for her to outperform other options lower on this list, even though Chen can't make use of its Weapon Effect at all. As a bonus, the Arts Intensity this weapon provides will also slightly improve Chen's Stagger from Lift.
Stat 1 Boost - 9/9Main Attribute: +132Stat 2 Boost - 9/9Physical DMG Bonus: +43.30%Passive Boost - 4/9Attack: +16.00%After the wielder consumes Vulnerability stack(s), ATK +[8% + 4% x Stacks Consumed] while other Operators in the team gain half of this buff for 20s. Effects of the same name cannot stack.
Another 6-star stat stick, which is good for Chen purely because of the passive bonuses it provides. Just like Grand Vision, Chen cannot activate this weaponâs Weapon Effect.
Stat 1 Boost - 9/9Main Attribute: +132Stat 2 Boost - 9/9Critical Rate: +19.50%Passive Boost - 4/9Battle Skills and Ultimates gain Physical DMG dealt +24%. Against staggered enemies, Battle Skills and Ultimates also gain DMG dealt +56%.
A Stagger specialised Sword, which you might expect to be strong for Chen, given how large a portion of her Ultimate is of her damage, but falls short compared to the options above. The reason for this is its lacklustre passive stat line with the main offender being its passive Crit Rate a stat which when compared to others offers less damage potential, this plus the fact another of its passives only affects her Ultimate and Battle Skill instead of being a generic boost most other weapons get sets it behind the curve. Its weapon ability is solid when played around, but it isn't enough to redeem it.
Stat 1 Boost - 9/9Agility: +124Stat 2 Boost - 9/9Physical DMG Bonus: +34.70%Passive Boost - 9/9Ultimate DMG Bonus: +44.80%For 30s after the wielder applies Lifted, the wielder gains Physical DMG dealt +33.6% during the next Ultimate cast. Max stacks for effects of the same name: 3. Duration of each stack is counted separately. Effect only triggers once every 0.5s.
Chen's next best 5-star option if you don't have Sundering Steel available for her. Has solid passive stats, with only the Ultimate DMG% being a little lacklustre compared to other weapon passives. The Weapon Effect on the other hand, is almost custom-made for Chen and boosts the damage of her Ultimates by a massive amount after she applies lift. Can't keep up with the more powerful 6-star stat sticks, the incredibly powerful Sundering Steel or Rapid Ascent, but a fine option if nothing else is available.
Stat 1 Boost - 9/9Agility: +93Stat 2 Boost - 9/9Physical DMG Bonus: +26.00%Passive Boost - 9/9After the wielder's Battle Skill hits the enemy, ATK +33.6% for 20s. Effects of the same name cannot stack.
Last resort option if you're lacking any of the choices above. Has the correct passive stats, but all at much lower base values, setting it significantly behind all other choices.
Gear Sets
The solo percentage shows how the set and gear impact Chen Qianyu performance if you look at their damage in the vacuum, while the team percentage shows the impact when taking into account full team, including buffs etc.Between the pre-release version of Endfield and 1.0, there was some major balance adjustments. The two major ones that have affected some of the %'s on a few of our build guides are the major buff to Physical Status effects (namely Breach and Crush), and the the nerf to Bonus DMG% vs Staggered gear pieces. All other character buffs/nerfs have also now been factored in but they have minimal impact on %'s. Note - no recommendations have changed as a result of this update, only the relative differences between weapons, sets and pieces was affected.
Stagger Efficiency Bonus +20%. When the wearer applies a Physical Status, the wearer also performs 1 hit that deals 250% ATK of Physical DMG and 10 Stagger. Effect trigger cooldown: 15s.
Swordmancer isn't Chen's best choice for personal damage (although it's close), but its 3P Set Bonus has an incredible supportive effect, which usually lands it as Chen's best option in most teams. The 3P bonus of Swordmancer grants an on-hit effect that deals 10 Stagger every 15 seconds, which Chen will easily trigger on cooldown in all teams she's played in. The 3P also increases all stagger Chen outputs by 20% further boosting its utility.
Gear Pieces
Keep in mind that the gear pieces below are being compared against having nothing equipped on the character at all. This means that in some cases, when you include Weapons, other pieces, outside buffs etc, the values of some pieces may change. For more accurate information, check the section above where we picked the best combination when you look at all pieces equipped.Pieces marked with a star* can perform better than listed - this applies to:Ult gain efficiency pieces, granting new Ultimate breakpoints,Arts Intensity boosting the efficacy of Electrification, Corrosion and Breach, rising overall team output even if personal damage is less impressive.
Armor
Gloves
Kit
Dupes Review
DMG Dealt +20% to enemies below 50% HP.
An execute style damage increase for Chen, which helps in the second half of a fight but averages out to be around a generic 10% DMG% increase (Additive with other sources like Physical DMG%), which is solid but not a game changer.
Agility +15, Physical DMG Dealt +8%.
A small boost to agility and some Physical DMG%, which adds together to be a modest but not particularly notable boost for Chen.
Battle skill Ascending Strike, combo skill Soar to the Stars, and ultimate Blade Gale improved: DMG Multiplier is increased to 1.1 times the original.
Boosts the damage of Chenâs Battle Skill, Combo Skill, and Ultimate by 10% (unique multiplier). This is Chenâs most impactful damage boosting potential so far, but also not a huge boost after factoring in Lift and passive basic attack damage.
Ultimate Blade Gale improved: Ultimate Energy cost -15%.
Reduces Chenâs Ultimate cost by -15%, taking it from 70 to ~6,0 boosting the frequency of its use significantly, allowing you to output more damage but also more Stagger if you decide to use it outside the Stagger window.
Combo skill Soar to the Stars improved: Length of cooldown -3s.
Reduces Chenâs Combo Skill cooldown by 3 seconds. At maximum level, Chenâs Combo Skill has a 15-second cooldown, which is already short amongst most of the Physical damaging cast. Many Physical teams Chen is a part of work rotationally, where they each use all their combo and Battle Skills in sequence, effectively syncing up their cooldowns. Because of this, reducing Chenâs cooldown by 3 isnât always as powerful as it sounds, as youâll just be waiting on the next characterâs Combo Skill cooldown in order to finish off your team's rotation. However, in some teams or strategies, you can make use of this extra cooldown reduction to either form new rotations or fit in extra Vulnerability stacks to existing rotations, making it a game-changer. Note: Calculations do not include the cooldown reduction of Chenâs Combo Skill, as the team used cannot benefit from it under the criteria we use.
DPS Comparison
Calculations
In this section we're showing the team setup used for the above calculations as well as the damage split for Chen Qianyu based on where it comes from. The setup isn't always best in slot for each character and also please keep in mind that with different team members, Weapons, and Gear, the calculations will change.
Team Compositions
Synergies
Overview
Kit Intro
Chen is a 5-star, Physical, Sword support damage dealer who specializes in low-cost Vulnerable application while also outputting solid personal damage without the need to soak up the team's resources. Unlike Physical spenders like Endministrator or Da Pan, Chen has no way to spend Vulnerable herself, meaning teams are rarely built around her, and she’s slotted in as a combo piece in other characters' teams instead.
The main reason to bring Chen to the team is her incredibly easy-to-activate Combo Skill, which only requires an enemy to become Vulnerable to activate, and which, on use, applies Lift and the Vulnerability stack that goes with it. Free application of Vulnerable is rare, and most Physical teams are starved for stacks and SP, making Chen a huge boon to the whole archetype.
The other reason Chen is a solid inclusion in teams is her solid personal damage and good Stagger output. Due to applying Lift on both her combo and Battle Skill, they each inflict more Stagger than most characters, assuming the enemy already has Vulnerability stacks. Add to that the fact she has a solid personal ATK% buff talent, another talent which causes her to inflict even more Stagger when interrupting enemies during their telegraphed animations, and a low-cost Ultimate with good multipliers. Chen is definitely capable of contributing nicely to the team's overall output.
Combo
Chen’s combo is her standout ability; it has a short cooldown and is very easy to activate, only requiring an enemy be afflicted with a stack of Vulnerable in order to trigger. Using it causes Chen to attack the target, inflicting Physical damage, and Lift. The snappy feedback of this combo and its ability to be used at any point during most Physical combos also makes it a strong ability for interrupting telegraphed enemy attack patterns.
Battle Skill
Chen’s Battle Skill is far less impressive than her combo, but still solid enough to use in some Physical team rotations. Using it costs 100 SP, deals Physical damage, some Stagger, and applies Lift. In teams without another character capable of applying Knock Down or Lift, and who only have other characters with Battle Skills that trigger Breach or Crush, its value does rise, though.
That aside, the main reason to use this ability over other characters isn’t its damage, Stagger, or Vulnerability, as none of those are unique. Instead, it's to build and maintain stacks on one of Chen’s talents, which grants stacking ATK%.
Ultimate
Chen’s Ultimate is simply a large single-target Physical nuke with an above-average damage multiplier and Stagger amount. Using it causes Chen to lock onto a single target and perform a series of 6 small slashes followed by a large slash, which deals far more damage; each hit from this attack triggers on-hit effects.
You can either use this ability's superior Stagger to push enemies into the Staggered state faster or save it for the Stagger window to take advantage of the Stagger damage multiplier and stats, such as DMG% vs Staggered enemies. A sub-stat common on Agility-based gear and many of Chen’s weapon choices.
Talents
Chen’s talents both contribute to her competent Stagger and damage output. The first, Slashing Edge, increases her damage by 8% for 10 seconds after she hits an enemy with a skill (Ultimate, Combo, or Battle Skill). The buff stacks up to 5 times for a maximum buff of 40% when capped out. When hitting multiple enemies with a single attack, each will grant a stack. Multi-hit abilities like Chen’s Ultimate also give stacks per hit.
Tip: To maintain as high stacks as possible and for as long as possible, you can try to Stagger using Chen’s Battle Skill and Combo Skill slightly apart from each other.
Chen’s other talent, Momentum Breaker, causes her to inflict an additional 10 Stagger when using her abilities to interrupt enemies' telegraphed abilities (big red rings). Given how Chen’s combo and Battle Skills are fast to execute, using them for this purpose isn’t too hard. It often won't interfere with most standard Physical team rotations, even if you have to save them for a bit. You don’t have to take advantage of this talent, but if you do, it’s a nice bonus.
Note: Despite the wording, you have to use Chen’s abilities to interrupt enemies; you cannot use other characters and still get the bonus.
Gameplay
How you play Chen will depend on the team you’re using her in, but across most teams, there is still a rough priority you can follow:
- Against enemies without Vulnerable, use another character’s Vulnerable application before Chen’s, as some characters require the first Vulnerability stack in order to gain bonuses/functionality. If this doesn’t apply, Chen can open up first with her Battle Skill instead.
- After applying the first stack of Vulnerable on enemies, if Chen’s combo is available, use it to add another.
- Optionally weave in Chen’s Battle Skill one or multiple times for additional Vulnerability stacks if your rotation needs them, and if you have the SP to spare. For those looking to optimize, try to space out Chen’s Battle Skill from her Combo Skill as much as possible without hurting your rotation to extend Slashing Edge’s duration.
- When Chen’s Ultimate is available, either save it for when the enemy is Staggered to maximize its damage or use it to push enemies into Stagger faster thanks to its higher Stagger value.
Detailed Review
Update History
Patch 1.0
January 21st, 2026
Patch 1.0
Striker 
Cryo 
Defender