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The Herta, a formidable 5-star Ice Erudition character in Honkai: Star Rail, excels with her powerful self-buffs and damage multipliers. As a primary damage dealer, she seeks the classic trifecta of CRIT Rate, CRIT DMG, and ATK, along with general damage boosts from her Light Cones. Her kit includes an impressive 80% CRIT DMG buff, making Light Cones that offer CRIT Rate highly desirable. Additionally, enhancements to her Skill and Ultimate are crucial due to her unique Interpretation mechanic, with a particular emphasis on the former.
Although finding Light Cones with both CRIT Rate and Skill DMG boosts outside her signature is rare, The Herta still benefits from numerous viable options within the Erudition Path. Both limited and free Light Cones offer valuable stats and closely match in effectiveness. Below are the best Light Cone options for The Herta in Honkai: Star Rail.
The Seriousness of Breakfast (S5)
Increases the wearer's DMG by 24%. For every defeated enemy, the wearer's ATK increases by 8%, stacking up to 3 times.
The Seriousness of Breakfast is a free Light Cone obtainable through Lucent Afterglow purchases or Echo of War drops. Players can also earn one copy by completing a hidden task aboard the Herta Space Station. Although it's not The Herta's top choice, it's a reliable option for new players without better alternatives. It provides straightforward damage boosts, serving as a solid placeholder until a more optimal Light Cone is acquired.
The Day The Cosmos Fell (S5)
Increases the wearer's ATK by 24%. When the wearer uses an attack and affects no fewer than 2 enemies with a corresponding Weakness, the wearer's CRIT DMG increases by 40% for 2 turns.
The Day The Cosmos Fell is another free Light Cone available via Lucent Afterglow or Echo of War drops. A free copy can be obtained by finding all the Origami Birds in Golden Hour. It offers slightly better performance than The Seriousness of Breakfast, but its effectiveness hinges on maintaining its conditional CRIT DMG buff. If players struggle to meet these conditions, its performance may decline. Nonetheless, it remains a viable placeholder for The Herta until a more suitable Light Cone is found.
Eternal Calculus (S5)
Increases the wearer's ATK by 12%. After using an attack, for each enemy target hit, additionally increases ATK by 8%. This effect can stack 5 times and lasts until the next attack. If there are 3 or more enemy targets hit, this unit's SPD increases by 16%, lasting for 1 turn.
Eternal Calculus is a free 5-star Light Cone purchasable from Herta's Store using Herta Bonds. It offers a substantial ATK% boost, though its effectiveness varies with the number of targets hit, making it less potent against fewer enemies. Despite this, Eternal Calculus remains a strong choice when its effects are fully utilized. The 16% SPD increase at S5 can be advantageous for reaching certain SPD breakpoints in combat. Like other free options, it serves as a decent placeholder for The Herta until a better alternative is secured.
Yet Hope Is Priceless (S1)
Increases the wearer's CRIT Rate by 16%. While the wearer is in battle, for every 20% CRIT DMG that exceeds 120%, the DMG dealt by follow-up attack increases by 12%. This effect can stack up to 4 times. When the battle starts or after the wearer uses their Basic ATK, enables Ultimate or the DMG dealt by follow-up attack to ignore 20% of the target's DEF, lasting for 2 turns.
Jade's signature Light Cone, Yet Hope Is Priceless, provides a valuable 16% CRIT Rate increase at S1, making it a decent option for The Herta. Although she cannot utilize the Follow-Up buffs, it serves as a reliable stat stick. The 20% DEF penetration for the Ultimate can be beneficial if used early in battle, though it's not a consistent effect since The Herta typically avoids using Basic ATKs. Additionally, Interpretation stacks may be low early in the fight, limiting the Ultimate's effectiveness.
Players should not pull for this Light Cone specifically for The Herta, as its performance does not surpass some more F2P-friendly options. If players already possess Yet Hope Is Priceless, it may be better suited for a unit that can fully utilize its effects, given the close performance of free Light Cones available for The Herta.
Geniuses' Repose (S5)
Increases the wearer's ATK by 32%. When the wearer defeats an enemy, the wearer's CRIT DMG increases by 48% for 3 turns.
Geniuses' Repose, obtainable from the standard Stellar Warp, is a great 4-star Light Cone offering a significant 32% ATK increase and a 48% CRIT DMG boost at S5. While The Herta needs to defeat enemies to activate the CRIT DMG buff, it's generally easy to maintain as the effect lasts for three turns. However, its effectiveness diminishes in prolonged battles against single boss targets without regular summons to refresh the buff, such as Hoolay.
An Instant Before A Gaze (S1)
Increases the wearer's CRIT DMG by 36%. When the wearer uses their Ultimate, the wearer's Ultimate DMG increases based on their Max Energy; Ultimate DMG increases by 0.36% per point of Energy, up to 180 Energy.
Argenti's signature Light Cone, An Instant Before A Gaze, is a great option for The Herta. At S1, it provides a 36% increase to CRIT DMG and a 64.8% boost to Ultimate DMG. While the Ultimate buff is valuable, The Herta would ideally prefer Skill DMG or general DMG instead, which limits this Light Cone's ranking. Similar to Yet Hope Is Priceless, players should only use this Light Cone if they already have it and avoid pulling specifically for The Herta.
Before Dawn (S1)
Increases the wearer's CRIT DMG by 36%. Increases the wearer's Skill and Ultimate DMG by 18%. After the wearer uses their Skill or Ultimate, they gain Somnus Corpus. Upon triggering a follow-up attack, Somnus Corpus will be consumed and the follow-up attack DMG increases by 48%.
Before Dawn, Jing Yuan's signature Light Cone, is a strong option for The Herta. Although she cannot take advantage of the Follow-Up Attack buff, the Light Cone still offers excellent unconditional stats that complement her kit. At S1, Before Dawn grants a significant 36% CRIT DMG increase and an 18% damage boost to both Skill and Ultimate. Although The Herta would prefer more CRIT Rate due to her A4 Trace, the additional CRIT DMG from this Light Cone is still highly valuable.
Today Is Another Peaceful Day (S5)
After entering battle, increases the wearer's DMG based on their Max Energy. DMG increases by 0.4% per point of Energy, up to 160 Energy.
Today Is Another Peaceful Day is an outstanding 4-star Light Cone that offers a substantial and unconditional damage boost. Thanks to The Herta's high 220 Energy cost for her Ultimate, she easily maximizes the Light Cone's effect, providing a total 64% damage increase at S5. Furthermore, Today Is Another Peaceful Day also possesses the highest base ATK out of all the current 4-star Erudition Light Cones, on par with the 5-star Eternal Calculus. This makes it the best option for F2P and low-spending players, and some might even argue that it is a more consistent choice compared to the next Light Cone on the list.
Night on the Milky Way (S1)
For every enemy on the field, increases the wearer's ATK by 9%, up to 5 stacks. When an enemy is inflicted with Weakness Break, the DMG dealt by the wearer increases by 30% for 1 turn.
Night on the Milky Way, obtainable from the standard Stellar Warp, is a great 5-star option that can perform exceptionally well for The Herta, provided its effects are consistently maintained. While it can reach up to a large 45% ATK boost at S1, it requires five enemies on the field to maintain those stacks. The Light Cone's performance diminishes considerably as the number of targets decreases. Additionally, players need to ensure that at least one enemy is inflicted with Weakness Break to activate the damage buff. While its consistency may fall behind a few other Light Cones, Night on the Milky Way remains a very strong choice, particularly for Pure Fiction.
Into the Unreachable Veil (S1)
Increases the wearer's CRIT Rate by 12%. When the wearer uses their Ultimate, increases DMG dealt by the wearer's Skill and Ultimate by 60%, lasting for 3 turns. After the wearer uses their Ultimate, if this Ultimate consumed 140 or more Energy, recovers 1 Skill Point.
The Herta's signature Light Cone, Into the Unreachable Veil, is unmatched as her best-in-slot option due to the immense value it provides. It offers a significant boost to Crit Rate and provides a generous damage increase to both her Skill and Ultimate. Additionally, this Light Cone recovers a Skill Point each time The Herta uses her Ultimate, making it exceptionally effective for SP-heavy teams. With a base ATK of 635, it also boasts the highest ATK stat among all Erudition Light Cones currently available. Its value extends to many other Erudition characters, even those who cannot meet the Energy requirement for the Skill Point.
