Wuthering Waves – Cartethiya build and materials guide

Leave behind the shackles of the past with the best Wuthering Waves Cartethiya build. This 5-Star Resonator wielding a Sword and dealing Aero DMG is a powerful Main DPS and comes with what’s essentially two different ability kits thanks to her transformation ability, which allows Cartethiya to change into Fleurdelys.

As Cartethiya, her main gimmick is that she can create three different types of Sword Shadows through her Basic Attack, Heavy Attack, and Resonance Skill — the Sword of Divinity’s Shadow, Sword of Discord’s Shadow, and Sword of Virtue’s Shadow, respectively. These Sword Shadows remain planted in the ground temporarily and can be recalled by executing a Mid-Air Attack.

Recalling the Sword Shadows triggers different effects, depending on which of them are being recalled. They also trigger different effects if they’re currently active while Cartethiya transforms into Fleurdelys, giving Fleurdelys a variety of bonuses.

The transformation is executed by using Resonance Liberation. Fleurdelys inherits 50% of her other self’s Max HP as well as any Sword Shadow bonuses triggered upon transforming. She comes with an entirely different kit from Cartethiya’s that’s focused on dealing Aero DMG and generating Conviction. Having 120 Conviction unlocks a very powerful Resonance Liberation ability for Fleurdelys. When transforming into Fleurdelys, she enters the Manifest state for a certain amount of time, allowing for free back-and-forth transformations using Fleurdelys’ kit. Once Manifest runs out, using Fleurdelys’ Resonance Liberation while not having maximum Conviction transforms her back into Cartethiya.

Ultimately, though, this means that you can essentially choose to explore the world as either of the two forms. Their respective Intro Skills deal Aero DMG with Cartethiya’s also summoning a Sword of Discord’s Shadow, while their Outro Skill boosts the active Resonator’s Aero DMG against targets afflicted with negative status effects.

Obtaining duplicates of the character greatly increases the power of her Aero Erosion on top of other buffs.

Best Cartethiya weapons – Wuthering Waves

Cartethiya is best equipped with her signature weapon, Defier’s Thorn, which provides a hefty bonus to her Max HP and allows her to temporarily ignore parts of the enemy’s DEF when she attacks. The Sword also amplifies any damage dealt to targets suffering from Aero Erosion — which Cartethiya can easily inflict. 

Why HP and not ATK, you ask? Easy: All moves Cartethiya and Fleurdelys have scale with their HP, so you want as much of it as possible, especially considering that Fleurdelys merely inherits half of Cartethiya’s Max HP. This does make finding a weapon for her tricky, though, as HP isn’t a common stat for Swords. Anything with CRIT Rate or CRIT DMG boosts will do fine, in case you don’t have an HP-focused option.

Best Cartethiya weapons in WuWa:

• Defier’s Thorn (5-Star)
• Guardian Sword (3-Star)

Best Cartethiya Echoes – Wuthering Waves

Naturally, Gusts of Welkin’s Sonata Effect is a fantastic fit for Cartethiya and Fleurdelys, even more so with Reminiscence: Fleurdelys as its Main Echo. Combined, these two elements are providing potent Aero DMG bonuses not only to their wearer, but also their team mates.

In terms of stats, you should aim for additional HP, CRIT Rate, CRIT DMG, and Aero DMG. As always, some Energy Regeneration comes in handy to facilitate those Resonance Liberations.

Best Cartethiya Echoes in WuWa:

• Sonata Effect: Gusts of Welkin (5-Set)
• Main Echo: Reminiscence: Fleurdelys

Best Echoes main stats for Cartethiya in WuWa:

• 4 Cost: CRIT Rate or CRIT DMG
• 3 Cost: Aero DMG
• 3 Cost: Aero DMG
• 1 Cost: HP %
• 1 Cost: HP %

Best Echoes sub stats for Cartethiya in WuWa:

• CRIT Rate, CRIT DMG, HP %, Energy Regeneration, HP

Best Cartethiya teams – Wuthering Waves

Although Cartethiya does solid work in any team comp, she’s geared towards working with other Aero DMG Resonators.

• Cartethiya (Main DPS), Ciaccona (Sub DPS), Rover (Aero) (Support)

Cartethiya deals extra damage to enemies suffering from Aero Erosion and the more stacks of this debuff they have, the higher this bonus damage gets — hence, she wants team mates who are capable of inflicting this status effect. Ciaccona is an obvious choice in this regard, as she can apply tons of Aero Erosion as well as amplify its damage and is capable of grouping up enemies, which makes it all the much easier for Cartethiya to wreak havoc. 

Rover (Aero) is a great support choice for this team, as they can inflict additional Aero Erosion, but also benefit from having Cartethiya present on their squad in the form of better Windstring generation. Naturally, Rover (Aero) also acts as the team’s main healer.

Cartethiya ascension materials – Wuthering Waves

Once Cartethiya has joined your team, you’ll want to level her up as quickly as possible, for which you’ll require the following materials:

• LF Tidal Residuum x4
• MF Tidal Residuum x12
• HF Tidal Residuum x12
• FF Tidal Residuum x4
• Unfading Glory x46
• Bamboo Iris x60
• Shell Credits x170,000

Tidal Residuum drops from many of the Tacet Discords roaming the map and can be gained in Forgery Challenges featuring Clamorlings or Tranquillites. Unfading Glory comes from defeating the Lioness of Glory in Septimont and Bamboo Iris is a local specialty available in Septimont. The best source of Shell Credits are the Simulation Challenges you can tackle at the Training Grounds.

In addition to leveling Cartethiya up, you’ll need to upgrade all of her skills. For this, you’ll need the following materials:

• LF Tidal Residuum x25
• MF Tidal Residuum x28
• HF Tidal Residuum x40
• FF Tidal Residuum x57
• Inert Metallic Drip x25
• Reactive Metallic Drip x28
• Polarized Metallic Drip x55
• Heterized Metallic Drip x67
• When Irises Bloom x26
• Shell Credits x2,030,000

For the materials already mentioned, check above. Cadence Seeds and its derivatives can be farmed in the Forgery Challenge: Flaming Remnants and Garden of Salvation, which you can enter from the Guidebook, or purchased from Uncle Wei in Jinzhou in limited quantities. When Irises Bloom is dropped by Fleurdelys.