The past few updates in Genshin Impact have been quite a riot. The game's META (most effective tactics available) has been shaken by a proverbial earthquake. Well, that's what happens when the developers release three top-tier DPS characters consecutively. First was Ganyu who claimed the top spot, then Xiao who put some surprising numbers at the cost of his own health, and finally, Hu Tao. She gave Diluc a run for his Mora.
Or did she? That's still the raging debate right now among those who love their pyro main characters in Genshin Impact. After all, Diluc has often been the main metric for DPS characters as he's the Golden Boy of pyro damage. Now, all that might change with Hu Tao. So how exactly does she threaten Diluc's spot as one of the best pyro DPS in the game? Let's find out by pitting Teyvat's resident embalmer against pyromaniac Batman.
Updated July 31, 2021, by Sid Natividad: The pyro character heyday is over for Genshin Impact DPS carries. The latest game updates have solidified cryo DPS characters as the top damage dealers in the game right now. Even so, the top pyro characters remain competent. Diluc and Hu Tao's competition is now even more fierce as the two have to be at their peak in order to come close to their cryo DPS counterparts. However, between the two, there can only be one winner.
Numerous tests have been done since Hu Tao's release, meaning a re-evaluation of the two is warranted. So, on top of pitting the two against each other even further, we'll also answer the questions, "is Hu Tao good? or "is Diluc still good?" Or more importantly, "is Hu Tao better than Diluc?"
15 Constellations: Hu Tao
For some players in Genshin Impact, a five-star character isn't complete without their Constellations. Getting those is expensive since you'll need multiple copies of an expensive five-star character. Of the two, however, Hu Tao's Constellations are more worth it and more robust than Diluc's.
The C1 Constellation ensures Hu Tao doesn't run out of gas while the C6 turns her into an immortal Crit monster. Diluc's Constellations are tamer and won't turn him into the same level of demigod-ness as Hu Tao at C6.
14 Talents: Hu Tao
We rated the Talents based on how much synergy they have with one another and how useful they are to the character. To that end, Hu Tao is notably more "talented" than Diluc. She has no wasted talents at all. Meanwhile, Diluc's first passive talent does not help him much. Moreover, Hu Tao's Elemental Burst and Elemental Skill work so much better together compared to Diluc's straightforward and unimaginative fire attacks. Hu Tao's Elemental Burst heals her and deals instant damage at the same time while her Elemental Skill allows her a sustained damage stream.
13 Usage in Spiral Abyss: Hu Tao
Statistics don't lie and once you peer into the developer's official data for Spiral Abyss, Hu Tao also has a clear edge against Diluc. More players have had success using her in that endgame gauntlet than they did with Diluc.
Hu Tao's success or popularity percentage in the Abyss is simply higher. The difference is also significant enough. Diluc is several characters below on the ranking. Granted, Hu Tao is actually one of the constant top choices for Spiral Abyss so keeping up with her can be a tall order. Regardless, if you want a surer success in that aspect of the game, pick Hu Tao.
12 Area Damage: Diluc
One advantage Diluc has against Hu Tao, however, is in his area damage. He has some of the widest sweeping attacks in the game. His Elemental Burst can hit multiple enemies at a 180-degree-angle or so. Thus, it's easier to clear several weak enemies with Diluc.
Hu Tao's damage might be higher but her attacks have poorer coverage. For Diluc, problematic areas in the Spiral Abyss such as Floor 11 can be a breeze thanks to his Elemental Burst. Even his claymore normal attacks hit wider than Hu Tao's polearm.
11 Single Target Damage: Hu Tao
Of course, when it comes to killing enemy bosses in the fastest way possible, Hu Tao is your gal. She has one of the highest single-target damage in the game that hits instantly, second only to Eula. With the right weapon, artifacts, and buffs, a C6 Hu Tao can hit a couple of million points of damage.
Even at C0, she still consistently kills bosses with six digits of damage in single bursts. If not, her charged attacks can deal incredibly high damage as well during her off-Burst moments. Fighting in boss battles is surely easier with Hu Tao as the DPS carry.
10 Flexibility: Diluc
First off is a measure between the two pyro character's usefulness in their party or to the players. Sure, a top-tier DPS is nice but being a one-trick pony makes them a bit of a nuisance in a game where switching out party members can get annoying fast.
On that front, Diluc is a bit better than Hu Tao due to being a claymore user. He destroys Abyss Mage shields faster and also deals with geo shields easily. Polearms simply aren't that useful outside of jabbing an enemy with open defenses.
9 Burst Damage: Hu Tao
By burst damage, we mean the highest numbers a character can output in one instance. That means a ton of setup is needed for this such as hydro or cryo application, food, proper party members, and even domain buffs.
One of the highest recorded damage numbers for Hu Tao comes in at a whopping 1.7 million - although that's under the most optimal and luckiest conditions. Meanwhile, Diluc players are more modest with numbers playing around 300,000 for the first hit of his Dawn Elemental Burst.
8 Sustained Damage: Diluc
Then again, those playing Diluc setting him up only for big Dawn numbers are doing it wrong. His sustained DPS is a bit higher since he tends to rely more on his Elemental Skill, Searing Onslaught, which has a suspiciously low cooldown.
As high as Hu Tao's damage numbers might be, she isn't dealing a sum of 500,000+ damage every six seconds even under the most optimal conditions. In fact, after Hu Tao's big damage, she goes on a considerably long cooldown where other characters can provide better party damage output. One could argue, however, that Hu Tao doesn't need sustained damage due to her nuke capabilities; so Diluc winning this one doesn't account for much. Hu Tao's overall damage numbers are still higher.
7 Artifact Synergy: Diluc
Both characters use the Crimson Witch artifact set as their best-in-slot gear as their focus is dealing pyro damage. Still, Diluc wins this one narrowly since the Crimson Witch set was more or less made for him.
He's the only five-star character who can maximize the effects of the Crimson Witch's four-piece bonus. Of course, that doesn't mean much when Hu Tao readily deals higher numbers but Genshin Impact's balancing can always change in the near future.
6 Weapon Synergy: Hu Tao
The trailers and even the weapon's stats themselves confirm it, the Staff of Homa was made for Hu Tao. The two were released nearly at the same time so that's already a given. So with a weapon clearly made for her, it's easy to see why Hu Tao deals way higher spike damage than Diluc.
Meanwhile, Diluc's best weapon is only Wolf's Gravestone and while that matches his aesthetics, it's not on the same level as the Staff of Homa; since it wasn't made with Diluc in mind. Diluc users can only hope for a claymore with the same main stats as the Staff of Homa.
5 Party Synergy: Tie
A pyro DPS is often only as powerful as their support will allow. That's why both characters need their own specialized party composition. So which among the two come out as better team players? Both.
Both of them deal pyro damage anyway so Diluc's party composition works just as well for Hu Tao. While Hu Tao might need a healer more so than Diluc, she makes up for the DPS loss by providing Crit Rate for other party members.
4 Availability: Diluc
Oh sure, players might be enjoying the 50/50 pity pulling with Hu Tao but a few more weeks and there she goes. Suffice to say, most of the people who probably got a Cx Hu Tao are those who spent considerable amounts of money on her, especially since her banner is limited.
Diluc, on the other hand, is everywhere - even on the weapon banners, albeit with a low chance. Still, this is a rather important factor if one is looking to raise up their pyro main's constellations without being forced to spend on a limited banner.
3 Simplicity: Diluc
Let's not discount a significant gameplay factor here. Hu Tao's 1.7 million damage might look might juicy but behind the scenes is complex micromanagement of her HP. To that end, she's similar to Xiao who does big damage but not with peace of mind.
Diluc, on the other hand, is content with doing the triple fire attack before releasing a firebird. His DPS has no consequences and is the most straightforward in the game. That's also why he's the comparison metric whenever a new DPS comes out.
2 Fun Factor: Hu Tao
Diluc's simple gameplay might not be for everyone. This one's similar to the Xiao versus Ganyu conundrum where the latter deals tons of damage but is boring while the former is high-risk, high-reward.
Hu Tao, again, is akin to Xiao. Her playstyle is more fun once you get the hang of managing her HP to maximize damage. Of course, being on alert at all times in order to not let Hu Tao die also adds more thrill to her gameplay.
1 Winner: Hu Tao
Diluc has been dethroned! Well, Klee likely dethroned him before Hu Tao even did but at least now, the debate is settled. It's not a landslide victory for Hu Tao though. The two still perform closely as far as DPS main characters go. It's just that Hu Tao's numbers are bigger, when it comes to practicality in-game, she takes it as a pyro DPS.
If you do happen to have both characters then no debate is needed, just try not to brag too much about your obscene luck.