Image Credit: HoyoVerse

The world of Genshin Impact continues to expand with the arrival of another playable character from Snezhnaya! Valeriy, also known by his title “Fort Fulguration,” has officially joined the roster in Version 7.2, Hour of Ruin.

Introduced as a disciplined Major of the Armory Palace and a member of the Fatui’s Special Assignments Battalion, Valeriy brings a defensive playstyle focused on shielding allies and strengthening Electro damage. Although he is a 4-Star character, his abilities make him a particularly interesting option for players experimenting with the new Stellar-Conduct reaction.

With his debut banner now available, let’s take a closer look at Valeriy’s background, abilities, combat mechanics, potential team compositions, and overall value.

Who Is Valeriy in Genshin Impact?

Valeriy is a 4-Star Electro character who uses a Sword in combat. He is affiliated with Snezhnaya and serves as a Major of the Armory Palace’s Special Assignments Battalion.

His official character introduction, titled “Fort Fulguration,” presents him as a highly disciplined individual who takes his responsibilities seriously. His daily schedule and military duties reflect his organized personality, while his relationship with Mitya provides another glimpse into his character.

Valeriy is also connected to the growing developments surrounding Snezhnaya. With the nation’s involvement becoming increasingly important to the overarching storyline, his playable debut gives players another opportunity to learn about the people serving within its military organizations.

His introduction is especially interesting because he is not simply another Fatui character focused on offensive power. Instead, his abilities emphasize battlefield protection, coordination, and support.

Valeriy’s Element, Weapon, and Rarity

Here is a quick overview of his character information:

Category	Details
Rarity	4-Star
Element	Electro
Weapon	Sword
Region	Snezhnaya
Affiliation	Special Assignments Battalion
Constellation	Ursus Magnus
Birthday	March 24
Combat Role	Support and Shielder

Unlike traditional Electro damage dealers, Valeriy is designed to strengthen the performance of another character. His abilities provide defensive protection while increasing the damage potential of Electro focused teams.

Valeriy’s Abilities Explained

Valeriy’s kit revolves around two important mechanics: Impact Momentum and Offensive Directive.

Impact Momentum allows him to prepare a special Charged Attack, while Offensive Directive provides additional damage to the active character’s Electro attacks.

Together, these mechanics allow Valeriy to contribute to a team’s damage even when he is not the character remaining on the field.

Elemental Skill: Active Defense

Valeriy’s Elemental Skill, Active Defense: Bastion Charge, deals AoE Electro damage and generates a protective shield for nearby party members.

The shield scales with his ATK and has increased effectiveness against incoming Electro damage. This makes it particularly useful for protecting teammates during encounters involving powerful Electro attacks.

The ability also generates Impact Momentum, which is required to activate his special Charged Attack.

One of the most appealing aspects of this skill is its potential uptime. With a relatively short cooldown compared to its shield duration, Valeriy can maintain protection for much of a typical combat rotation.

Special Charged Attack: Point-Blank Bombardment

Once Valeriy accumulates enough Impact Momentum, his Charged Attack transforms into a special mortar attack called Direct-Fire Mortar: Point-Blank Bombardment.

This attack consumes his accumulated Impact Momentum and deals AoE Electro damage.

More importantly, it grants Offensive Directive stacks. These stacks allow the active character’s Electro attacks to deal additional damage based on Valeriy’s ATK.

This is where his support capabilities become particularly interesting. Rather than simply providing a shield and switching out, Valeriy can actively increase the damage dealt by the team’s primary Electro character.

The damage bonus becomes even more valuable when Valeriy is operating within a Stellar-Conduct team.

Elemental Burst: Focused Fire

His Elemental Burst, Focused Fire: Lightning Salvo, deals AoE Electro damage and creates a barrage of Thunderburst Shells.

During the barrage, Valeriy can accumulate additional Impact Momentum when other nearby active party members hit opponents with Electro attacks.

This creates an interesting interaction with Electro focused teams. Characters who attack frequently can help Valeriy replenish his resources while continuing to deal damage.

It also gives players another reason to consider his rotation carefully, especially when trying to maximize the damage bonus from his special Charged Attack.

Passive Talents

Valeriy’s passive talents further improve his ability to support the team.

• Advance With the Creeping Barrage: While his Elemental Burst is active, other nearby active party members generate Impact Momentum whenever they hit opponents with Electro attacks.
• Into the Breach: Consuming Impact Momentum with his special Charged Attack increases the additional damage provided by Offensive Directive.
• Tundra Operational Intelligence: Increases rewards from Snezhnaya Expeditions lasting 20 hours by 25%, excluding Nod-Krai.

These abilities reinforce his identity as an Electro support character who benefits from coordinated attacks and carefully timed rotations.

Stellar-Conduct: Why Valeriy Works Well With Mitya

One of the biggest reasons Valeriy is receiving attention is his synergy with the new Stellar-Conduct reaction.

Introduced alongside Mitya in Version 7.2, Stellar-Conduct changes how certain team compositions interact with Superconduct. Mitya converts the team’s Superconduct reactions into Stellar-Conduct reactions, providing additional damage opportunities and new ways to build around Electro characters.

Valeriy is specifically designed to support this playstyle.

His Offensive Directive provides an Electro damage bonus under normal circumstances. However, when he enters the Radiance: Stellar-Conduct state, the bonus shifts toward Stellar-Conduct damage and becomes substantially stronger.

This makes him particularly valuable in teams built around Mitya and other characters who can help activate the reaction.

In other words, Valeriy is not simply an Electro shielder. He is also a specialized support character who helps strengthen one of the newest combat mechanics introduced in Version 7.2.

Best Team Compositions for Valeriy

Although his strongest synergy appears to be with Mitya, Valeriy has potential applications in other Electro focused teams.

Here are a few team combinations worth considering.

1. Mitya Stellar-Conduct Team

Mitya | Valeriy | Odette | Yae Miko

This is one of the most promising compositions for Valeriy.

Mitya serves as the primary damage dealer and enables Stellar-Conduct, while Valeriy provides shielding and additional damage bonuses. Odette contributes Cryo application and additional damage, while Yae Miko supplies off-field Electro damage.

The team benefits from having multiple characters contributing to the reaction while Valeriy protects Mitya during his longer attack sequences.

2. Accessible Mitya Stellar-Conduct Team

Mitya | Valeriy | Cryo Traveler | Alyosha

For players who do not have access to every premium character, this composition offers an alternative.

The Cryo Traveler can help activate the conditions required for Stellar-Conduct, while Alyosha provides additional Electro support and healing.

Valeriy protects the team and strengthens its damage output, allowing Mitya to remain the central offensive character.

3. Cyno Stellar-Conduct Team

Cyno | Valeriy | Cryo Traveler | Qiqi

Valeriy can also support Cyno in a Stellar-Conduct focused composition.

Cyno benefits from the additional Electro damage support, while Valeriy provides a shield that helps protect him during extended combat sequences.

The Cryo Traveler helps enable the reaction, and Qiqi provides additional healing and Cryo application.

Although this composition does not use Mitya, it demonstrates that Valeriy’s usefulness is not necessarily restricted to the newest 5-Star character.

Can Valeriy Work Outside Stellar-Conduct Teams?

Yes. Valeriy can still provide shielding and Electro damage support in other compositions.

Players using Electro damage dealers in Aggravate, Overload, or Lunar-Charged teams may find his defensive utility useful.

However, his strongest damage bonuses are tied to Stellar-Conduct. As a result, his overall value will depend on the characters available in your roster and the reactions your team is designed to activate.

Valeriy’s Best Weapons and Artifacts

Since Valeriy’s shield and support bonuses scale with ATK, players should prioritize weapons and artifacts that improve this stat.

Recommended Weapons

Some weapon options worth considering include:

• Summit Shaper: A strong option thanks to its ATK and Shield Strength bonuses.
• Aquila Favonia: Provides high Base ATK and an additional ATK bonus.
• Skyward Blade: Offers high Base ATK alongside Energy Recharge, helping him use his Elemental Burst more consistently.
• Calamity of Eshu: A useful 4-Star option that provides ATK and additional benefits while protected by a shield.
• Moonweaver’s Dawn: Provides ATK and Elemental Burst damage bonuses.
• Finale of the Deep: A craftable alternative that offers additional ATK.

Summit Shaper is particularly attractive because Valeriy can benefit from its shield related effects while maintaining his defensive role.

Recommended Artifacts

Valeriy has several artifact options depending on the team composition and available equipment.

A Day Carved From Rising Winds (4-Piece)

This set provides an ATK bonus through its two-piece effect, while the four-piece effect increases ATK after the wearer hits opponents with Normal or Charged Attacks, Elemental Skills, or Elemental Bursts.

It is a straightforward option for improving the stats that support Valeriy’s abilities.

Heart of the Furnace (4-Piece)

This set is worth considering in teams that can consistently activate Stellar-Conduct related damage effects. It provides additional ATK and can increase the team’s Stellar Glimmer damage.

Gladiator’s Finale (2-Piece) + Shimenawa’s Reminiscence (2-Piece)

For players who do not have suitable four-piece sets, combining two ATK boosting sets is a convenient alternative.

Recommended Main Stats

Artifact Piece	Main Stat
Sands	ATK% or Energy Recharge
Goblet	ATK%
Circlet	ATK%

ATK% should generally be the priority because it improves both his shielding and support capabilities. Energy Recharge becomes more important if you are having difficulty using his Elemental Burst consistently.

Unlike traditional damage dealers, Valeriy does not need to prioritize CRIT Rate and CRIT DMG to maximize the utility of his shield and damage bonuses.

Is Valeriy Worth Pulling?

Valeriy is an interesting addition because he occupies a relatively specialized support role.

His biggest strength is his ability to combine defensive protection with offensive support. Players who want to build around Mitya and Stellar-Conduct will have a particularly good reason to consider him.

However, there are a few things worth considering before spending Primogems.

Reasons to Consider Pulling:

• Provides a shield that can protect the entire party.
• Increases Electro damage through Offensive Directive.
• Offers particularly strong support for Stellar-Conduct teams.
• Can work with multiple Electro focused damage dealers.
• His ATK focused build makes his stat priorities relatively straightforward.

Reasons to Skip:

• His strongest damage bonuses depend on Stellar-Conduct.
• Players without suitable Electro damage dealers may not benefit as much from his specialized support.
• Other established shielders may already fulfill the defensive requirements of your existing teams.
• As a 4-Star character, obtaining a specific constellation is not guaranteed.

One additional consideration is that Valeriy is scheduled to enter the standard Wanderlust Invocation after his featured debut banner ends. This means players will have future opportunities to obtain him through the standard wish pool, although there is no guarantee of when he will appear.

Overall, Valeriy looks like a strong specialized support option rather than a universally necessary character. His value will depend heavily on whether you intend to use Stellar-Conduct teams.

Valeriy’s Constellations

For players fortunate enough to obtain multiple copies, Valeriy’s constellations provide additional improvements to his support capabilities.

Some particularly notable upgrades include:

• C1: Improves his energy generation and provides additional Impact Momentum during combat.
• C2: Grants the entire party 100 Elemental Mastery after using his Elemental Skill, making it especially useful for reaction focused compositions.
• C4: Increases his Impact Momentum capacity and improves how quickly he generates it.
• C6: Significantly strengthens his special mortar attack and Thunderburst Shells while providing additional offensive benefits against affected enemies.

His second constellation is particularly interesting for players using Mitya, since additional Elemental Mastery can improve the team’s reaction focused damage.

His sixth constellation provides substantial offensive improvements, although reaching it will require considerable investment.

Final Thoughts: Is Valeriy a Must-Have for Genshin Impact Players?

Valeriy’s arrival in Version 7.2 gives Genshin Impact another specialized support character with an interesting combination of defensive and offensive utility.

His shield provides valuable protection, while Offensive Directive allows him to strengthen the damage output of Electro focused teams. His synergy with Mitya and Stellar-Conduct is especially noteworthy, making him an appealing option for players interested in exploring the newest reaction mechanics.

However, he is not necessarily a must-pull for everyone. Players who already have established teams and reliable shielders may not find enough reason to prioritize him, particularly if they do not plan to use Stellar-Conduct.

Still, his arrival adds another piece to the growing Snezhnaya roster and gives players more flexibility when experimenting with new team compositions.

With the story of Teyvat continuing to unfold and more characters from Snezhnaya becoming playable, Valeriy is another interesting addition to watch.

Have you pulled for Valeriy, or are you saving your Primogems for another upcoming character? Let us know what you think, and stay tuned to The Gamers Cut for more Genshin Impact character guides, build recommendations, banner analysis, and gaming news!