If you’ve spent even a few hours exploring Wuthering Waves’ open world, you’ve likely run into endgame bosses or domain challenges that feel borderline unbeatable with your starting roster. Picking up stronger, more versatile units is one of the fastest ways to make your playthrough smoother, and we’re breaking down exactly how to get new characters in Wuthering Waves for both casual and dedicated players. You don’t have to drop hundreds of dollars to get your favorite units, either — most of the methods we cover work entirely for free if you’re willing to put in a bit of consistent effort.
Core Methods to Get New Characters in Wuthering Waves
There are four primary ways to unlock new units in the game, each suited for different playstyles and spending levels. You can mix and match these methods to fit your schedule and budget, no pressure to grind for hours every day. Below is a breakdown of each option, with pros and cons to help you decide which to prioritize:
- Limited and Standard Event Banners: The most common way to pull rare 5-star and 4-star units, using premium currency called Astrite. Limited banners have higher drop rates for featured units, and you’re guaranteed a 5-star unit every 90 pulls, with a 50% chance it’s the featured 5-star. The main downside is that limited banners only run for three weeks, so you have to plan ahead if you want a specific featured unit.
- Limited-Time Event Rewards: Almost every major update adds a free 4-star unit you can unlock by completing event missions, no gacha pulls required. These units are often fully optimized for the event’s theme, and many are viable in endgame content even after the event ends. The only catch is you have to complete the missions before the event wraps up to claim the unit.
- In-Game Shop Exchanges: You can exchange earned currency like Sun Points and Gacha Shards for specific 4-star units, and sometimes even limited 5-star units, in the permanent in-game shop. This is a great option if you missed a unit on their original banner, though the selection rotates every few months.
- Story and Progression Unlocks: A small handful of core units unlock automatically as you complete main story chapters and clear early-game progression milestones. These free units make solid additions to any early roster, so don’t sleep on them while you save for higher rarity pulls.
You don’t have to prioritize every single one of these methods at once, either. If you’re a free-to-play player, focusing on event rewards and saving Astrite for limited banners you care about will get you the best results without unnecessary grind. Paying players can pick up monthly subscription packs to speed up Astrite earnings, but it’s far from required to build a strong roster.
Tips for Free-to-Play Players to Maximize Character Unlocks
One of the biggest mistakes new free-to-play players make is blowing all their Astrite on the standard banner as soon as they get it. The standard banner has a huge pool of units and weapons, so your odds of pulling a specific unit you want are extremely low. Save all your free Astrite for limited banners that feature units you actually want to use, and you’ll have a much higher chance of getting the roster you’re aiming for.
You can earn free Astrite every day by completing daily commissions, clearing weekly domain challenges, exploring hidden chests across the map, and completing achievement milestones. If you’re consistent, you can earn enough for at least one 5-star unit every two updates, even without spending any real money. That’s more than enough to build a well-rounded roster for all endgame content.
Don’t ignore free event 4-star units, either. A lot of new players write them off as weaker than gacha 5-stars, but many event 4-stars have unique support abilities that make them core parts of top-tier meta teams. For example, the free 4-star support unit from the 1.2 update is still a staple in almost every elemental reaction team, even months after the event ended. You can also unlock extra copies of these event units during the event to boost their strength, making them even more viable long-term.
What to Know About Gacha Pity and Rate-Up Systems
Wuthering Waves’ gacha system uses a pity mechanic that guarantees you high-rarity units after a set number of pulls, so you never have to worry about getting unlucky forever. Understanding how this system works will save you a ton of frustration, and help you plan your pulls more effectively.
Soft pity kicks in at around 75 pulls on a limited banner, which means your odds of pulling a 5-star unit increase dramatically with every pull after that point, up until you hit the 90-pull hard pity guarantee. If you pull a 5-star unit that isn’t the featured rate-up unit, your next 5-star pull is guaranteed to be the featured unit, no exceptions. That means if you lose the 50/50 on a banner, you can save up another 90 pulls to guarantee the unit you want.
Weapons have a separate pity system, too, but we recommend prioritizing character pulls over weapon pulls if you’re a new player. A good character will always make a bigger difference to your team strength than a high-rarity weapon, especially if you don’t have a well-rounded roster yet. You can pick up solid 4-star weapons for free from events and shops to use with your new units, so you don’t need to waste pulls on weapon banners early on.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Unlocking New Characters
Even if you follow all the tips we’ve covered, it’s easy to make small mistakes that slow down your character unlock progress. We’ve made almost all of these mistakes ourselves in our first few months of playing, so you don’t have to.
First, don’t waste gacha shards on random 4-star units you don’t plan to use. Gacha shards are one of the rarest free currencies in the game, and you can use them to unlock copies of limited 5-star units you already have to boost their power, or to pick up limited 4-star units you missed from past events. Save them for units you actually want, not for random filler units you’ll never put on your team.
Second, don’t skip daily and weekly missions. Even if you only have 15 minutes to play per day, knocking out your daily commissions takes less than 10 minutes, and the Astrite and currency you earn adds up fast over time. Skipping just a week of dailies can cost you enough currency for 10 extra pulls, which is often enough to hit pity for a new unit. If you’re really short on time, you can even use the quick complete feature for dailies once you hit a certain account level.
Third, don’t feel pressured to pull on every new banner. It’s easy to get excited when a new unit drops with flashy animations and cool abilities, but if the unit doesn’t fit your playstyle or your existing team, you’re better off saving your currency for a banner that aligns with what you actually enjoy playing. There’s no shame in skipping three or four banners in a row to save for a unit you’ve been waiting for.
At the end of the day, figuring out how to get new characters in Wuthering Waves doesn’t have to be complicated, and you don’t have to spend a fortune to build a roster you love. Play at your own pace, prioritize the units that fit your playstyle, and take advantage of all the free rewards the game gives out, and you’ll be surprised how quickly your roster grows. You don’t need every meta unit to enjoy the game or clear all endgame content, so don’t let FOMO push you into spending money or grinding more than you have fun with. The best part of Wuthering Waves is exploring the world and playing with units you actually like, so focus on that first, and the rest will fall into place.