If you consume anyGenshin Impactcontent, you may have heard the term “internal cooldown,” or ICD. Here’s a somewhat simplified explanation of what this means for your characters and why it’s important.
Internal cooldown for elemental application (“elemental ICD” or just “ICD”) refers to the interval of time between elemental hits that apply their element. For example, let’s look at Yoimiya, who can deal Pyro damage with her Normal Attacks.
Yoimiya stands in front of a Cryo enemy and spams Normal Attacks. Her Normal Attack string is a combo of seven hits that all deal Pyro damage. However,only hits 1, 4, and 7 triggered Melt. All of her hits did Pyro damage, but only those specific hits applied the Pyro element to the enemy. So what’s going on?
Standard ICD in Genshin Impact
Yoimiya’s Normal Attacks have what we callstandard ICDinGenshin Impact, meaning she applies Pyroevery three hitsorevery 2.5 seconds, whichever comes first. In Yoimiya’s case, her Normal Attacks are fast enough that the three-hit condition is met before the 2.5s condition.
It’s also worth noting thatevery damage source has its own independent ICD. If Yoimiya’s Burst is active at the same time she is doing Normal Attacks, her Burst will also apply Pyro independently of her Normal Attacks.
Understanding these rules provides insight into why characters likeXingqiuare so valuable. Xingqiu’s Burst follows standard ICD rules, but it deals so many hits of Hydro damage that it ends up triggering the three-hit rule extremely often. At Constellation 6, every wave of Xingqiu’s Burst applies Hydro to the enemy. More Hydro application means more reliable reactions, cementing Xingqiu’s place in the meta as one of the best Hydro appliers inGenshin Impact.
Non-standard ICD
Some characters inGenshin Impacthave special ICD rules coded into their kits. The most notable example isXiangling, who has no ICD at all on her Pyronado. Every single Pyronado hit will apply Pyro, regardless of how much time has passed or how many times it has hit the enemy.
This makes Xiangling apowerhouseof a DPS, since she can trigger Vaporize with every single hit of her Burst, provided you have enough Hydro to keep up with her. It also makes her one of the most reliable Pyro appliers for setting up Melt reactions.
Other characters are not so lucky.Collei’sBurst has a special ICD of 3 seconds. Her Burst will only apply Dendro to the enemy every 3 seconds, regardless of how many times it has hit. This special rule actively slows down Collei’s Dendro application, reducing her usefulness in Dendro teams.
Certain chain reactions are unaffected by ICD. Swirl, for example, will apply the Swirled element to the enemy every single time it occurs. Jean andBennettabuse this rule with their “Sunfire” combo. Bennett’s Burst continuously applies Pyro to the on-field character, and Jean’s Burst continuously applies Anemo to trigger rapid, repeated Pyro Swirls centered on the player. Any enemy caught in these Swirls gets Pyro applied to them, beating out even Xiangling’s rate of Pyro application.
Why is elemental application rate important?
How quickly you can apply an element dictates how many and what kinds of reactions you’re able to perform. If you want a specific character to trigger reactions, you need to make sure that the prerequisite element (the “aura”) is already present on the enemy.
For example, if Yoimiya wants to trigger Vaporize with her Pyro-infused Normal Attacks, she needs to have a constant Hydro aura on the enemy. Xingqiu or Yelan can reliably provide this Hydro aura with the rapid Hydro application from their Bursts.
In other words,your aura applier should have faster elemental application than your trigger character.
Knowing which characters can apply their element more quickly or more slowly is an integral part of teambuilding inGenshin Impact.Armed with this knowledge, you are free to build more creative teams with more control over your reactions.
