Why Honkai: Star Rail Stopped Releasing 4-Star Characters – A Full Breakdown

Time: 2025-06-20 15:05:12

Author: Aleksi B

In the Version 3.5 preview of Honkai: Star Rail, the developers officially introduced two new characters: Haetherine and Kaluttra — both 5-stars. Once again, no new 4-star character was revealed. Since Version 3.0, multiple updates have followed this pattern, leading many players to ask:

Why has the game stopped adding new 4-star characters altogether?

This isn't a coincidence. Instead, it’s a structural change stemming from story decisions, system design, and character usage evolution. This article analyzes the rationale behind this shift through five key lenses: narrative consistency, strength balancing, development resources, player behavior, and the protagonist system.

▍Why All Golden-Blooded Characters Are 5-Stars by Default

Starting from Version 3.0, the main plot has focused heavily on the Golden-Blooded characters. These figures are central to the narrative, each contributing to the recovery of the Flame, pushing the story forward, and representing unique facets of destiny. They’re not side characters — they are essentially co-protagonists.

If any of them were designated as a 4-star, it would feel like a downgrade in status, contradicting their pivotal narrative role. To ensure consistency in storytelling and avoid community backlash, assigning all of them 5-star status is a logical and safe decision.

▍Designing 4-Star Characters Is Increasingly Difficult

In terms of gameplay, 4-star characters fall into a design dilemma — too weak and they’re ignored, too strong and they overshadow older 5-stars.

Take the DOT (damage over time) team as an example: if a new 4-star DOT character is stronger than Black Swan or Kafka, it could invalidate the investment of players who pulled those premium characters. But if the new 4-star is weak, it won’t enable any meaningful team composition.

With most meta teams revolving around synergies, break thresholds, or trigger frequency, it becomes difficult to create a 4-star who doesn’t disrupt the ecosystem or feel obsolete upon release. That risk of imbalance makes their development far less appealing from a system perspective.

▍Developers Prefer to Allocate Resources to 5-Star Characters

Creating a new character in Honkai: Star Rail isn’t cheap — whether 4-star or 5-star, the process includes modeling, animations, effects, skill sets, story voice lines, testing, and balance passes.

Since 5-star characters drive revenue and are central to every version's promotional cycle, developers logically prioritize polishing them. While 4-stars might still serve niche purposes, they don’t generate nearly the same commercial or gameplay impact, making them lower priority in the development pipeline.

Furthermore, 5-stars often come with matching Light Cones, companion quests, and sometimes entire new mechanics — investments that simply don’t make sense for most 4-star releases.

▍Veteran Players No Longer Rely on 4-Stars for Team Building

In early game stages, 4-star characters such as Tingyun, Pela, and Qingque were vital due to the limited availability of 5-stars. But as versions progress and players accumulate characters, even F2P players often have several strong 5-star teams available.

At this point, even a well-designed new 4-star may not find a spot in active lineups. They’re more likely to be used as temporary “demo toys” and later replaced, which reduces the incentive for players to care about or invest in them long-term.

▍The Trailblazer Has Fully Replaced the 4-Star Role

Though no new 4-stars are being added, the developers have already provided a smart alternative — the Trailblazer, the player’s protagonist character.

The Trailblazer can switch Paths in each version, adapting to new team mechanics; their ascension is free; and they receive full Eidolons simply by progressing through the main story. Their combat role is always “system-compatible” — never broken, but always viable.

Effectively, the Trailblazer is a “pre-installed 4-star” that is more flexible, accessible, and affordable than any conventional unit. The system makes sense: rather than constantly designing new 4-stars that might disrupt team balance, the Trailblazer fills that gap in a sustainable, universal way.

▍The Value of 4-Star Characters No Longer Outweighs That of the Protagonist

Many players still hope for new 4-stars — often because they want low-cost, usable units without burning too much Stellar Jade. However, in practice, 4-stars also require Eidolons to perform optimally, which demands duplicate pulls.

In contrast, the Trailblazer is free, gets guaranteed upgrades, and is always tailored for the latest combat systems. It’s difficult for any new 4-star to beat that in terms of cost-efficiency or flexibility. As a result, the fundamental appeal of new 4-star characters has been eroded.

▍The Absence of 4-Stars Is a Strategic, System-Level Choice

Looking at the full picture — from narrative priorities and power balancing to dev resources and ecosystem saturation — it becomes clear that skipping new 4-star characters is not an oversight but a deliberate choice.

Every version now follows a structured format: two 5-star characters drive the system, while the Trailblazer covers synergy gaps or acts as a free starter unit. This reduces the need for “filler” characters and avoids power creep or team slot congestion. In this model, 4-star releases have naturally faded out.

▍Conclusion

It may seem like 4-star characters have vanished, but in reality, their function has simply been absorbed into a more elegant, sustainable system. The Trailblazer has become the most optimized version of a universal 4-star — one who grows with the story and adapts to every new battle system without ever asking players to spend extra resources.