this companion piece to our Wuthering Waves best teams coverage handles the choice players actually face in 3.7 — which weapon to pull, when a four-star substitute is enough, where to stop on Resonance Chains, and how artifacts and weapon substats should complement each other. The weapon banner guarantees the rate-up in 80 pulls; the character banner's 80-pull pity only guarantees "a five-star", half of which is the rate-up, so the expected cost doubles if you get the order wrong.
Applicable version: 3.7 "Mirror-Locked Illusion, Heart Lights the Dust" (live 2026-09-30; official site is a JS app, so exact figures follow the official notice)
Wuthering Waves 3.7: why weapons come before chains
The same Astrite buys far more certainty in the weapon banner. The weapon banner guarantees the featured weapon within 80 pulls; the character banner guarantees a five-star within 80, with only a 50 percent chance it is the featured unit . One is a fixed 12,800 Astrite, the other is a coin flip.
Weapon types are not interchangeable
The two Electro five-stars in 3.7 use different weapon types, so the weapons do not swap between them . Confirm which unit you are building before you pull; a wrong banner costs 12,800 Astrite, not a few hundred.
When not to pull at all
If your carry already holds a five-star of the same type with crit or crit damage substats, a new weapon usually adds under 10 percent. Saving for the next character banner is the better trade.
Wuthering Waves weapon banner: 80-pull pity, 100 percent rate-up
The rule is simpler than the character banner: a five-star weapon within 80 pulls, and it is guaranteed to be the featured weapon . At 160 Astrite per pull, the worst case is 12,800; an average outcome lands at 50 to 65 pulls, or 8,000 to 10,400 Astrite.
Cost versus the character banner
The character banner's worst case is 160 pulls after one loss, or 25,600 Astrite . That gap explains the standard advice: weapon first, chains later, because chains require duplicate characters and double the cost.
How much Astrite a patch pays
A single 3.7 patch regenerates roughly 8,000 to 9,000 Astrite including dailies, events, Tower and exploration , or 50 to 56 pulls. One patch covers one weapon guarantee. It does not cover a weapon plus a chain.
Wuthering Waves four-star substitutes: when they hold up
A four-star weapon is not automatically a stopgap. What matters is whether the substat lines up: carries want crit rate, crit damage or ATK percent. A four-star with DEF or HP substats is effectively empty .
Substats before base attack
The base attack gap between four and five-star weapons is about 10 to 15 percent, but a mismatched substat pushes the real gap past 25 percent . Judge by the substat, not the rarity frame.
Refinement as the equaliser
A four-star at refinement 5 usually closes the base attack gap through its passive . The cost is duplicate copies, which for free players is slower than pulling one five-star.
Wuthering Waves Resonance Chains: where to stop
Chain value is not linear. Chains 1 and 2 tend to complete mechanics (an extra hit, shorter cooldown, higher crit), while chains 3 and up mostly stack numbers.
Chains 1 and 2 are the real breakpoints
If your carry runs the deepest Tower floor, chain 1 often pulls the rotation inside the time window, and chain 2 adds roughly 8 to 12 percent. Beyond that, each chain is worth 3 to 5 percent and the value drops off a cliff.
Who should chase chain 3+
Only accounts with finished echo stats that still miss the timer by ten seconds. Everyone else gets more from a weapon or from saving for the next patch .
Common misread: chains do not fix echo stats. Stat gaps are an echo problem; chains raise multipliers .
Wuthering Waves echoes and weapons: matching the substats
Echoes use five pieces with a 12-point COST cap, and carries typically spend it as 4+3+3+1+1 . If the weapon supplies crit rate, the echoes should supply crit damage, and the reverse. The two lines complement each other rather than stack.
The 70 / 140 stopping point
70 percent crit rate and 140 percent crit damage, a clean 1:2 ratio, is the widely used stopping point . Past that, one extra ATK substat is worth 3 to 5 percent total damage, which does not justify more tuners.
Elemental damage versus attack
The 4-COST main echo takes elemental damage and the 3-COST slots take ATK percent. Elemental damage sits in its own multiplier and is not diluted, while ATK percent gets spread thin by team buffs .
Wuthering Waves 3.7 planning: the correct spending order
There is one order: weapon guarantee, then chain 1 on the carry, then echo stats, then chain 2. Skipping a step raises the cost of everything after it.
Check the gap before pulling
Open the character screen. An account below 60 percent crit rate and 120 percent crit damage should spend on echo tuning, not banners, because Astrite cannot fix a stat gap .
Priority table
| Priority | Item | Cost ceiling | Condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Current weapon banner | 12,800 Astrite | Carry lacks a same-type five-star |
| 2 | Resonance Chain 1 | 25,600 Astrite worst case | Tower timer is the blocker |
| 3 | Echo tuning | 250 tuners per team | Crit below 70/140 |
| 4 | Chains 2 and up | Same as above | Perfect stats and still 10 seconds short |
Wuthering Waves FAQ
How many pulls guarantee the weapon?
A: 80 pulls guarantee a five-star weapon and the featured one is 100 percent, so the worst case is 12,800 Astrite.
Weapon banner or character banner first?
A: Weapon first. The character banner's 80-pull pity only guarantees a five-star with a 50 percent rate-up chance, so the worst case is 160 pulls and 25,600 Astrite.
Can four-star weapons replace five-stars?
A: Yes when substats line up, especially at refinement 5. Mismatched substats push the gap past 25 percent .
Which chain should I stop at?
A: Chain 1 or 2. Each chain beyond that is worth about 3 to 5 percent .
What are the echo crit targets?
A: 70 percent crit rate and 140 percent crit damage, a 1:2 ratio .
Action checklist
- Confirm whether you are building the sword or the broadblade user before pulling.
- Count Astrite: under 12,800 means skip the banner and save.
- Tune echoes to 70/140 before considering chains.
- Stop chains at 1 unless the Tower timer is the only blocker.
- Judge four-star weapons by substats, not by refinement level.
Echo and Tower routes for this patch are collected on GameHub.