All I want for Christmas is a six-star Diluc in Genshin Impact

Do you remember what it was that drew you to Genshin Impact? For me, it was Diluc. That man is cool. Red hair, fuzzy coat, successful business ventures, giant sword, fiery attacks – you name it, he’s got it all. The game obviously has a lot more going for it, but that red-haired vigilante is the reason I downloaded it.

I didn’t get him until three and a half years into playing the damn game (ironically, just before the five-star selector came out), but now I do have a C3 Diluc with a great set of artifacts and crowned talents. What he is missing, though, is a signature weapon. Now, what could solve that? Him getting a rate-up banner, or perhaps Varka releasing with the Wolf’s Gravestone he stole off Diluc.

Hear me out: if we get a Diluc banner, that could be for… a six-star Diluc. The first six-star in the game. Maybe the only six-star in the game, why not? He’s been there from day one, and we know he wants to go to Snezhnaya with us, to, uh, help out. He could, nay, should also get an update to his kit and model. Please allow me to make my case for why Diluc should get this special treatment.

Firstly, Diluc got the first five-star skin in the game, featuring a [redacted] high ponytail and outfit shape that clearly changed his in-game model (more on that in a moment), which is wild given that gachas mostly focus on the waifus – Honkai Star Rail and Zenless Zone Zero both did this by giving female characters the first five-star skins. For some reason, Genshin is a little more lenient. Even now, two and a half years later, Diluc’s ‘Red Dead of Night’ outfit is the only five-star option in the game – and comes with a fun quest to do, too.

It’s not just the rightful skin treatment that makes me think Diluc deserves a new version or, at the very least, an upgrade. It’s the fact that he’s in dire need of a model upgrade. While the skin helps a bit with a delightful new ‘do, his face does, unfortunately, need some work. The man has buggy eyes that do not match the recent, detailed five-star characters.

Take Escoffier and Chasca, for instance: Escoffier’s got glittery tights, and Chasca has the most detailed eye makeup in the game. Next to Diluc’s gigantic eyeballs that take up 80% of his face, it’s a stark contrast that shows not only how the game has progressed graphically, but also how badly he needs some reconstruction. Mind you, I can say the same for Albedo, so he’s not alone, but Diluc’s is worse.

Genshin devs also decided to give Diluc an absolute boost in the form of Xianyun. There’s no way she released with her priority being to support the four-star Gaming (as much as I love the lil Liyue lad). She revolutionized Diluc teams, as his plunge damage is, for some reason, really high. Clearly, they know Diluc needs work. They know we want to use him. They know he needs an upgrade.

Recently, we got a range of Hexerei buffs for old Mondstadt characters in the game, including Albedo, Mona, Klee, and Fischl, but no Diluc. Sigh. It’s wild that he didn’t, to be honest. I get why the associated characters got theirs, but aside from the lore aspect, they all just needed a bit of help to keep up with today’s meta. Do you know who else needs that? DILUC. Badly!

Venti, Klee, and Albedo are limited characters, so it makes sense why they got a buff, but why is Mona there and not our favorite redhead? Adding a little extra talent to his kit could revolutionize the way we play him, and if it needs another Hexerei character to unlock – well, that’s fine, because Sucrose and Durin can work really well with him.

I’m fully clown make-upped and awaiting the announcement of Diluc getting a buff. If not a six-star version, then please another Hexerei or Snezhnaya-rei buff. Even his burst animation could use some work, as he doesn’t get the zoom-in the way most other five-stars do. Maybe this is a hint that HoYoverse didn’t intend for him to be a five-star in the game’s development… but that doesn’t bear thinking about.

For now, I’ll be here trying in vain to pull a Wolf’s Gravestone for him, and dreaming about how to make his performance better without a real upgrade. Oh, and one last thing – no, I didn’t dye my hair red because of Diluc, but I forgive you for assuming that.