Best FTP Shenhe Teams in Genshin Impact 3.5

The latter half of Genshin Impact’s 3.5 banners will see Shenhe making her return. The woman raised by Liyue’s Cloud Retainer is arguably the best Cryo support in the game. However, she can be a bit difficult to build because of the way her kit works, and most people assume she needs high-cost 5-star characters to use her. That’s just not true: Here are the best FTP Shenhe teams in Genshin Impact 3.5 and how you can build a team with what you have.

Best Shenhe Permafreeze Free-to-Play Team

In order to build a Permafreeze free-to-play team with Shenhe, players will need at least one Cryo DPS. Luckily, the game gives everyone a good option right at the beginning: Kaeya. For a free-to-play team, Kaeya is a great option that offers both strong Support with his Elemental burst and DPS potential. Other FTP options are Rosaria, Chongyun, and even Aloy if you really want to use her. If you happen to have Ayaka (who’s also getting a 3.5 banner alongside Shenhe) or Ganyu, they’re top-tier characters for this spot.

Next is a Hydro applicator. Considering one of the best Hydro applicators in the game is Xingqiu, he’s the most obvious pick here. He’s also been available to get for free in multiple events. If you don’t have him or are utilizing him in another team, then Barbara is another good pick (she just won’t give you as much damage, but she will heal you!). Some 5-star options that also work well are Yelan, Kokomi, or even Nilou.

The last spot on the team is a bit of a flex pick. One option includes a Cryo sub-DPS, picked from the same DPS list above. Another good option is an Anemo user that can infuse their attacks and/or buff their team, like Sucrose (or Kazuha/Venti if you have them). You can also choose a shielder in this spot, which is especially useful if your Hydro applicator isn’t healing you. A good choice for this is Layla since she’ll also work well with Shenhe’s abilities.

Why You Should Build Permafreeze

In Genshin Impact, the Elemental Reaction Freeze is one of the strongest in the game. It can be a bit deceptive, considering the high damage numbers actually come from things that aren’t always the characters.

Permafreeze teams work around the Blizzard Strayer artifact set. This 4-piece set makes it so that players gain two additional stacks of 20% Crit Rate when fighting enemies that are frozen while also giving a 15% Cryo buff. These buffs are pretty massive, and it gives players the ability to build on things like Crit Damage while not worrying about Crit Rate. 

Combined with Shenhe’s ability to increase Cryo Damage and Elemental Skill/Burst Damage, this team comp works incredibly well. Plus, it’s relatively easy to build with a variety of strong 4-stars (and 5-stars) to fill each role. 

Additionally, frozen enemies can’t fight back. This is a massive advantage, and while major boss enemies can’t be frozen, the Cryo Damage bonuses are still worth making the team. 

Top Cryo Free-to-Play Team With Shenhe

Another option for FTP or low-cost players is to build an all-Cryo team. Because of the buffs from Shenhe and the artifact set Blizzard Strayer (and general buffs from other usable Artifact Sets and characters), this is another strong option. While it won’t freeze enemies, it’ll shred them down before they have a chance to do too much damage. 

These teams generally see a combination of the following characters:

• Kaeya
• Rosaria
• Layla
• Diona
• Chongyun

Besides Shenhe, the most important thing to have on these teams is rotating DPS characters and another character who can buff them/protect them as the player needs. Top-tier characters here would be Kaeya, Rosaria, and Layla, but there’s plenty of wiggle room with other Cryo characters.

The only Cryo characters that don’t work too well with teams like this are Aloy and Eula. Aloy is in desperate need of a new kit so she can reliably proc Cryo while Eula focuses on physical damage, not making use of the team’s synergy. Early ideas about Mika, who will be the new 4-star on Shenhe’s 3.5 banner, also don’t look favorable for all-Cryo teams.

While the name says all-Cryo, having one Anemo user that can infuse Cryo and deal damage is another great option. Sucrose is a great free-to-play option here, but if you happen to have Kazuha or Venti, they’re even better.

Those are the best FTP Shenhe teams in Genshin Impact 3.5. Are there any characters you plan to use with Shenhe that didn’t make the list? Let us know in the comments below!