Understanding Cartethyia’s Core Mechanics
Cartethyia, now available in Wuthering Waves, stands out as a powerful character with a unique transformation mechanic and a skillset that rewards mastery. Her damage output scales with max HP and focuses heavily on Basic Attack damage, especially when synergized with Aero Erosion effects. Understanding how her swords interact with each skill is key to optimizing her playstyle.
Each time you activate her 4th Basic Attack, Intro Skill, or Resonance Skill, a sword (Divinity, Discord, or Virtue) becomes active on her Forte Circuit bar. These are crucial because triggering all three before a Mid-Air Attack greatly enhances its power and applies valuable Aero Erosion stacks.
Mid-Air Attacks and Transformation Triggers
One of Cartethyia’s most powerful tools is her Mid-Air Attack. The more swords she has active, the higher the damage. These attacks deal Aero Erosion damage, making them an essential part of her combo rotation. Her Resonance Skill automatically launches her into the air, giving an easy way to follow up with a Mid-Air Attack immediately.
Once her energy bar fills, Cartethyia can trigger her Resonance Liberation, transforming into her stronger Fleurdelys form. This transformation drops her HP to 50% if she was above that threshold, but her high base HP offsets this penalty. After transforming, she gains access to a completely different skill set and a temporary damage-boosting buff called Manifest.
What Changes in Fleurdelys Form
While in Fleurdelys form, Cartethyia gains:
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+60% Aero Damage during the 12-second Manifest buff
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Access to re-transforming into her base form (if the special liberation isn’t unlocked)
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Buffs if she triggered a full 3-sword Mid-Air Attack before transforming
Fleurdelys’ 4th and 5th Basic Attacks can freeze enemies, while nearby enemies take more Aero Erosion damage. The drawback? Aero Erosion triggers faster—every 1.5 seconds—which can deplete stacks quickly if you’re not careful. Managing this timing is important, especially since stacks are needed for her enhanced damage output.
Maximizing Damage with Her Forte and Liberation
In Fleurdelys form, every attack she lands builds Conviction, her new Forte resource. Her five-hit combo ends in a strong animation that dishes out massive damage. If you hold the Basic Attack button after a Heavy Attack, she’ll perform an Enhanced Heavy Attack—an essential part of her optimal rotation.
Her Resonance Skill in this form generates a field, lifting her up and letting her chain into Mid-Air Attacks. Use the third Mid-Air Attack for area damage or stick with the first two for better DPS when Aero Erosion stacks are already high. If she has full Forte, Cartethyia can trigger an Enhanced Resonance Liberation. This ability deals massive damage and restores half her HP. It gets stronger with each Aero Erosion stack (up to 5).
Talent Priority & Best Weapon Choices
If you're wondering what to level up first, focus on:
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Forte Circuit
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Liberation
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Basic Attacks
These offer the best value. Her Resonance and Intro Skills can be upgraded later.
For weapons, her signature weapon is without question the top choice. It provides bonus HP and ignores enemy defense, perfectly matching her HP-scaling damage. Camellya’s Red Spring is a solid second option, improving her Basic Attacks. If you don’t have those, go for crit stat sticks or Guardian Sword for the HP% bonus.
Best Echo Sets for Cartethyia
The optimal echo set is Windward Pilgrimage, boosting her Crit Rate and Aero Damage. You’ll want to equip Fleurdelys as the main echo skill, now available in this set. Other decent options include:
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Gusts of Welkin (paired with Fleurdelys echo)
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Sierra Gale + Nightmare Felian Beringal
For echo patterns, use 44111 with both Fleurdelys and Kelpie on Crit stats. Use HP% on the 1-cost echoes. Alternatively, 43311 also works if you lack gear for the 44111 pattern.
Substat & Energy Regen Priorities
Make sure you have 10–20% Energy Regen first. Then focus on:
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Crit Rate / Crit Damage
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HP%
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Basic Attack Damage
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Liberation Damage
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Flat HP (as a filler stat)
These choices help maximize both forms of Cartethyia’s kit.
Recommended Team Compositions
The best team revolves around Ciaccona, designed to support Cartethyia. She provides buffs, Aero Erosion application, and solid personal DPS. If Ciaccona is on the team, Aero Rover should take the third slot, raising the max Aero Erosion stacks and amplifying Aero damage.
If you don’t have Ciaccona, Sanhua is a decent buffer. Alternatively, you can run a quickswap setup using Changli. Cartethyia’s long animations and multiple swap windows make her a good fit for this style. The third slot can go to Shorekeeper, Verina, or Aero Rover, depending on whether you need sustain or extra buffs.
Cartethyia’s Core Rotation for Consistent DPS
To get the most out of Cartethyia in regular teams, you’ll want to execute this consistent rotation:
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Start with Intro Skill – This activates one of the three swords and starts your Basic Attack from Stage 2.
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Chain Basic Attacks – Continue with Stage 2, 3, and 4 to activate another sword.
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Use Resonance Skill – This triggers the third sword and launches her into the air.
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Immediately Attack Mid-Air – With all three swords active, the Mid-Air Attack will deal massive Aero Erosion damage.
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Activate Resonance Liberation – Transform into Fleurdelys.
Once in Fleurdelys form:
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Cast Resonance Skill Again – You’ll go airborne again.
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Hold Basic Attack – Perform Mid-Air Attack 3 and plunge down.
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Recast Resonance Skill – Dive again and resume your Basic Attack chain from hit 3 onward.
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Do Full Combo – Go through hits 3 to 5, then use a Heavy Attack followed by a Basic Attack to trigger an Enhanced Heavy.
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Use Liberation – Fire off her enhanced liberation when Forte is full, then swap out if needed.
This full cycle maximizes Aero Erosion stack usage and Forte generation while keeping her damage high across both forms.
Short Rotation Tips for Faster Kills
If you’re running with Ciaccona or have Cartethyia’s S3 unlocked, you’ll generally have max Aero Erosion stacks up at all times. In that case, skip the plunge (Mid-Air Attack 3) and go for Mid-Air Attacks 1 and 2 instead. This cuts animation time and slightly improves DPS over time.
For enemies with lower HP or in quickswap compositions, it’s better to stick with shorter combos and transform back quickly to maintain tempo and reduce downtime.
Animation Cancels for Speedrunners
To squeeze more DPS out of her, here are a few useful cancels:
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Cartethyia Form:
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Cancel the delay after her 4th Basic Attack using Resonance Skill or a jump.
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Cancel post Mid-Air Attack delay with Liberation.
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Fleurdelys Form:
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Cancel the end of Mid-Air Attack 3 with her Skill 2.
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Cancel Enhanced Heavy Attack’s ending lag with her second Ultimate.
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Timing these right allows for a faster return to combos or swaps without losing damage.
Swap Cancel Windows for Quickswap Teams
Cartethyia integrates well into quickswap comps, thanks to her multiple cancel windows:
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In Cartethyia form, you can safely swap after using her Resonance Skill or 4th Basic Attack.
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In Fleurdelys form, swap after the second Resonance Skill, but avoid doing it after the first cast as it resets the cooldown.
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Swap out mid-animation safely as long as no Outro buff is active (which cancels when swapping).
This opens room for characters like Changli to tag in during her animation delays, keeping damage uptime high across the team.
Cartethyia’s Sequences: Which Ones Are Worth It?
Not all of Cartethyia’s sequences provide equal value, especially when considering how costly they are to unlock. Here's a breakdown of what you should know:
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Sequence 1 (S1): Adds some Aero Erosion utility and crit scaling, but it's very situational. It’s helpful for clearing waves in content like Whimpering Wastes but not essential overall.
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Sequence 2 (S2): This is a major power spike. It applies three Aero Erosion stacks on her next attack post-Liberation, doesn’t consume stacks when triggering damage, boosts multipliers, and lowers skill cooldowns. This is one of the best S2s in the game and shifts Cartethyia into top-tier territory.
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Sequence 3 (S3): Lets Fleurdelys apply Aero Erosion through more abilities and increases damage on her second Liberation. It’s a nice upgrade, especially for team synergy.
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Sequence 4 (S4): Team buff focused. Adds value to the overall team DPS but not essential unless building around her fully.
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Sequence 5 (S5): Improves Cartethyia's survivability. Nice to have, but not mandatory.
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Sequence 6 (S6): Unlocks Cartethyia’s true damage potential. It enables maximum Aero Erosion stack uptime, allows stacks to trigger damage without being consumed, and makes enemies take 40% more from Fleurdelys attacks. If you're a heavy investor, this turns her into a raid boss shredder.
Best F2P and Premium Team Options
Top-tier (Premium) Team:
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Cartethyia (Main DPS)
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Ciaccona (Support/Debuff/Buff)
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Aero Rover (Utility Sub-DPS)
This trio is built for maximizing Aero Erosion and keeping her buffed throughout rotations. Aero Rover becomes even more valuable due to the buff extension and energy generation via Cartethyia’s animation windows.
Good F2P Alternative:
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Cartethyia
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Sanhua (Buffer) or Changli (Quickswap DPS)
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Shorekeeper or Verina (Sustain/Buff)
If you’re lacking premium supports like Ciaccona, this setup can still deliver excellent results. Changli in particular shines thanks to her bursty kit and ability to tag in during Cartethyia’s downtime.
For these lineups, you’ll want to tailor echo choices. Use Bell-Borne Echo instead of Fallacy of No Return if you’re relying on Shorekeeper or Verina for healing and sustain.
Why Cartethyia is Worth the Investment
Even if you don’t have a premium team, Cartethyia’s high damage ceiling and ease of use make her one of the best value characters in Wuthering Waves. With strong interruption resistance, multiple swap and animation cancel points, and flexible rotations, she can fit into many different team styles.
If you’re someone who enjoys characters with mechanical depth and rewarding gameplay loops, Cartethyia (especially with a few sequences) is one of the most satisfying characters to build and play.
Conclusion
Cartethyia offers an impressive mix of burst damage, transformation mechanics, and high flexibility in team building. Whether you have access to her full premium setup or just working with F2P alternatives, she brings reliable Aero Erosion utility, strong animations, and impactful rotations that can handle all content in Wuthering Waves. Mastering her combo flow and optimizing echo sets will bring out her full potential. If you're looking for a character who scales with skill and investment, Cartethyia is a top-tier pick worth your time.
FAQ
Q: What stat should I prioritize for Cartethyia?
A: HP%, Crit Rate, Crit Damage, and Energy Regen (~10–20%).
Q: Is her signature weapon required?
A: Not required but highly recommended. It significantly boosts HP and lets her ignore enemy defense.
Q: What’s the best echo set for her?
A: Windward Pilgrimage with Fleurdelys Echo skill is best.
Q: Can I use Cartethyia without Ciaccona?
A: Yes. Sanhua or Changli + Verina or Shorekeeper form great alternatives.
Q: How should I build her talents?
A: Prioritize Forte Circuit, Liberation, and Basic Attacks first.
Q: What’s the most important sequence to unlock?
A: Sequence 2 offers the biggest performance boost and is ideal if you only get one.
Q: Is she beginner-friendly?
A: Yes. Even without cancels or premium teams, she’s strong and straightforward.
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