Just like how we design analogs of Star Rail characters in Genshin, we can do the reverse and design analogs of Genshin characters in Star Rail. In fact, the TCG of Genshin (a turn based game) provides hints on how to do this translation.
HSR has skill points whereas TCG has elemental dice. In TCG, every character atk (normal, E, Q) consumes elemental dice, and the elements need to match. The dice are re-rolled and regenerated at the end of each round.
The sp system of HSR is a bit different: characters can regenerate sp with basic attacks and consume sp with skills. Bursts do not consume sp. Also sp can be used regardless of element. One does not need to convert elemental dice as in TCG. One similarity between HSR and TCG is that both basic attacks and skills generate energy to use bursts.
If one thinks about it, there is actually no reason why TCG needs to use this elemental dice system at all. They can just adapt the sp system from HSR. There will be no need to end rounds and reroll dice or convert dice into different elements.
Another feature that TCG has that HSR does not is support cards. One can draw many supporting cards from a deck to aid the characters in combat. Using these supporting cards can sometimes consume dice. So HSR could technically introduce some system of 'supporting cards' that cost sp. This may require some creativity on behalf of the designers.
Also in TCG one uses 3 character teams, whereas HSR allows 4 character teams. This is not too big of a deal. Some games even allow up to 5 characters on a team. 4 is probably reasonable, but 3 is a bit on the lower side.
The damage system of TCG is much simpler than HSR. Cards have a low integer number of health points, and attacks usually do a few points of damage (like -2, -3).
HSR lacks elemental reactions, whereas TCG has them. And reactions are one of things that makes TCG unique. HSR combat could be greatly enhanced if it developed a TCG-like system of reactions.
In Genshin and TCG, some characters can do physical damage with their NA. In HSR, a character will only deal damage of their specific element. We will follow the HSR convention below.
Also Genshin allows NA, CA, and PA, whereas in HSR there is just one basic attack. To introduce CA into HSR, one can have the following mechanic: either CA takes 2 turns before firing or CA does not generate a sp (or can even consume 1 sp). By contrast a NA generates 1 sp.
It seems TCG has additional support cards that correspond to characters' constellations. Constellations are basically like additional passives for a character.
Below we discuss how Genshin characters' combat kits may be implemented in the HSR turn-based game. Some of these designs may be inspired by the TCG analogs. We may also discuss in detail the TCG implementations of these kits as well.
Q enters yaksha mode, greatly buffs NA dmg bonus (by 100%) and enhances his NA. NA turns into plunge attack, where Xiao jumps into the air, avoiding damage for 1 turn, before plunging and doing aoe damage on the enemy. E could do blast damage on the enemy. E1 could give 'extra charge' on skill, allowing him to use a free E once every 2-3 turns. E6 could allow him to use his skill 4-6 times a turn, and his skill will not consume sp. Xiao has passive that increases his anemo dmg bonus during yaksha mode. He also has another passive that increases each E use the more it is used. While in yaksha mode, he drains hp each turn. (Also cf how Freya plunges in FF9.)
In TCG, Xiao's burst gives anemo infusion and makes NA do +1 anemo dmg. If he does plunging atk during burst, he does +2 dmg. Burst lasts 2 turns.
To do plunging atk in TCG, you have to switch to the character, and then their next NA is considered a plunge attack. So for this to work for Xiao, it would be something like: use Q, switch out, switch back in, use NA (now plunge), and repeat. Also during his Q, when Xiao switches out it costs 1 less die.
This switching out mechanic is almost similar to Freya in FF9, where Freya leaps into to the air and avoids enemy damage, only to unleash a plunging nuke after some turns.
Another way to implement plunging is to give Xiao a special NA action (that costs dice) during his Q phase, allowing him to leap into the air, avoid damage for 1 turn, before dealing a plunge attack. In HSR, this could be a special enhanced basic atk (that costs sp) with a similar mechanic to Freya.
Xiao also has a talent card Guardian Yaksha similar to his C6 effect (and works regardless of st or aoe). During his Q, his E costs 1 less anemo dice (goes from 3 to 2 dice). It is not quite like his C6 as the E still costs 2 dice. To make it more like C6, the card could reduce the E cost to 0 dice (make it free).
But this also shows that dice cost in TCG (and sp cost in HSR) is sort of equivalent to cooldown in Genshin. That is, cd reduction in Genshin is a equivalent to things costing less sp in HSR (or less dice in TCG). For HSR, either you spend less sp, or you are given more sp for free (there is a subtle difference even if they have similar effects).
Alhaitham: can consume 1-3 sp for skill. Consuming 1 sp will give 1 mirror, 2 sp will give 2 mirrors, 3 sp will give 3 mirrors. Every 1 turn, Alhaitham loses 1 mirror. Using a CA can grant him 1 mirror. This can happen once every 3 turns. When mirrors are present he gains a dendro infusion on his NA. And he cannot use his skill when he has mirrors. If he does an NA the mirrors will do coordinated aoe dendro damage, scaling with his EM and ATK and the number of mirrors. Q does aoe nuke of dendro dmg that scales with number of mirrors he has. It will give him 3 minus the number of mirrors he had before using the Q.
The TCG card did try to capture his mirror mechanic somewhat (the coordinated atk does 1 dendro dmg per NA), but is missing how when he has more mirrors he does more damage. This part is actually key to how his personal damage is so high (in quicken). Moreover the coordinated mirror attacks are in addition to his own NA damage.
Of course, if using him as a driver for hyperbloom, he does his job fine even with one mirror.
TCG incorporates CA by saying if the number of dice you have is even, your NA will be considereed a CA. Another option is to incorporate different modes for NA that cost different amounts of dice (like for QQ/Lunae). Spending 1 sp does NA. Spending 2 sp does CA.
But essentially what happens is that in TCG Alhaitham can get 'infinite' dendro infusion, which is good for quicken/hyperbloom. (In TCG hyperbloom is implemented such that when bloom core is created it gives +2 dmg to next electro dmg. Burgeon is implemented similarly, giving +2 dmg to next pyro dmg.)
Fischl works with Alhaitham (Fischl is given free in early TCG). Interestingly, Fischl E has no downtime in TCG (unlike in overworld Genshin). Having 100% uptime as a subdps (like Albedo, Furina), she becomes more useful in hyperbloom/quicken teams.
Eula relies on superconduct. Suppose superconduct has been implemented in HSR. E gives 1 grimheart stack and costs 1 sp. Hold E consumes all stacks and costs 2 sp. If 1 grimheart stack is consumed, shreds physical res. If 2 grimheart stacks are consumed, shreds physical res and does aoe nuke of physical dmg.
Q does aoe cryo dmg, gives 1 grimheart stack, summons lightsword that lasts 2 turns, gives 1 sp, and advances Eula's action forward by 100%. When teammates damage enemies, they will generate 1 energy stack for the lightsword. At the end of 2 turns, the lightsword explodes, dealing aoe physical dmg scaling with the number of energy stacks.
The lightfall sword mechanic is actually quite similar to how Jing Yuan's lightning lord works.
His basic atk takes 1 turn to charge (meaning he will wait 1 turn doing nothing before unleashing his CA), when unleashed his CA drains 48% of his hp, his E gives him 1 stack (every 2-3 turns), his Q gives him 2 stacks, his basic atk can consume 1 stack to instantly use his CA (without waiting a turn). Consuming a stack will also heal him. Alternate design: his basic atk consumes 3 sp for 1 CA. Each CA will drain 48% of his hp. His E gives 3 stacks, his Q gives 6 stacks. His basic atk can consume 3 stacks for 1 CA without consuming sp. Consuming stacks will heal him. If he triggers reactions, his CA will increase in damage. The more hp he has, the more dmg bonus his CA gets. His CA can be blasts.
Kit has some similarities to Noctis, but not really. E does nuke of damage to say st. When party procs crystallize reaction, she gains a stack. She can store up to 6 stacks. The more stacks she has the more damage her E does. Her Q does dot and gives 1 stack per turn. After using E she gains geo infusion and 40% dmg bonus on basic atk for 1 turn.
The vacuum cc abilities seem very Genshin specific, related to its 3d physics and gravity. Venti E can lift an enemy into the air, immobilizing them for 1 turn. Venti Q does aoe anemo dot, while lifting all enemies in the air and immobilizing them for 3 turns. If the Q comes into contact with pyro, elector, hydro, cryo, it will absorb that element and deal additional dot of that absorbed elemeVentint. Assuming swirl is implemented in HSR, the Q can also swirl the absorbed element. Venti would be very broken in HSR if he could lift all enemies. So perhaps a mass limit could be imposed so that the vortex cannot lift very heavy enemies, as is the case in Genshin.
In TCG, Venti's skill creates a stormeye that makes switching characters cost less. This actually is supposed to simulate how you can plunge attack by riding Venti's E current as in TCG plunging is implemented by switching characters (see Xiao). The Q can also swirl and do elemental absorption.
The burst makes the opponent switch characters so there is a theme of impairing, disabling, cc-ing the enemy, making it harder for them to take action. Thus nihility (debuffing enemy) also acts like a kind of defense (like preservation). Debuffing enemy atk is one way to reduce dmg to the team, but crowd-control and preventing the enemy from attacking you is another way to reduce dmg to the team. The difference is that nihility is more proactive and offensive, disabling the enemy, whereas preservation is more reactive, increasing the team's own defensive ability.
In TCG only one character (the active character) can move at a time, and you need to spend dice to switch to other active characters. HSR does not have this, and characters take turns making moves. Anyways, Venti is more op in overworld Genshin than in card form.
E creates solar isotoma field that lasts 5 turns. Whenever teammates attack enemies, the field will do a coordinated geo attack that scales with Albedo's defense. Q does aoe geo nuke. This is probably one of the simplest designs for a character in the game.
In TCG, his E creates a summon (Solar Isotoma) that deals 1 geo dmg per turn. It lasts 3 turns. It also decreases the cost of plunging attacks by 1 unaligned element. This reflects how in overworld his elevator enables plunging.
His Q does 4 geo dmg and +2 more if his E is deployed.
If one wants to implement the plunging in HSR, when Albedo casts his E, he allows all characters to use their plunge attack. The plunge can be a separate button like the basic attack. It can cost 0 or 1 sp. When characters use this plunge attack, they step on Albedo's elevator and rise. For 1 turn they avoid enemy attacks and take no damage. This is like the 'fly' move in pokemon (or like Freya's ability in FF9, as discussed with Xiao). On the turn after that, they will do their plunge attack, dealing aoe damage to opponents.
Will there be any abilities that implement 'dig' in Genshin?
In TCG, Dehya's E reduces dmg taken by 1. She will also tank dmg if her hp is 7 or above. It also deals 1 pyro dmg per turn, lasting 3 turns. And it also has 100% uptime so she can proc melt, vape, burgeon.
What if her E gave 50% crit rate, 100% crit dmg, 40% atk, 40% hp, ... In TCG, HP increase can be simple: just give +1 or +4 hp to allies. ATK increase can be +1 or +2 dmg for allies' attacks.
Apparently in TCG, Bennett Q gives universal +2 dmg to character attacks (for 2 rounds), regardless if outside TCG the character is atk/def/hp scaling.
NA does single target anemo, CA does blast. E allows him to hover for 2-3 turns, which decreases the chance that he is hit (what else can it do in HSR?). The E cd is 1 turn. Using E costs 1 sp. E also gives a multiplier to his NA and CA, while increasing their aoe. NA can do blast dmg, while CA does aoe dmg. Q does aoe nuke. C1 increases his speed (there is no 'atk spd' in HSR). C2 increases his Q dmg based on how long he is in the hover state.
Scaramouche E buffs his NA dmg and has some effect on standby characters. His Q does a nuke. It deals 1 more dmg if he is in E mode (so this sort of accounts for C2 effect or pyro buff). Scaramouche is an example of a Genshin-unique character. It is hard to translate his levitation and flying abilities into a turn-based game like TCG or Star Rail. So in this sense, Genshin is a more 'general' game. It is easier to convert a Star Rail character into a Genshin character, but sometimes harder to do the reverse (without some simplification/information loss).
In TCG, Yaoyao E summons Yuegui, who heals the character that took the most damage each turn. This gives an idea for a kind of healer in Genshin that heals the character with the lowest hp. Yaoyao Q heals characters when switching between them. It could have been a party-wide heal as is the case in Genshin.
Lyney's kit is actually a bit different from Blade's. If there is pyro on the enemy, Lyney deals 60% more dmg, +20% dmg for each pyro character on the team. His lv2 CA requires 2 sp (or 3 sp) to use and will consume 20% of Lyney's HP (if above 60%). It creates a taunting cat that aggros the enemy (the enemy may attack the cat instead of the player). After 1 turn the cat will fire a pyrotechnique strike that deals increased dmg and restore energy if Lyney lost hp while using the CA. Only 1 cat can exist on field at a time. If a new one is created the existing one will automatically fire a pyrotechnique strike. With C1 the limit is increased to 2 cats at a time (and CA can summon 2 cats, effect occurs once every 3-5 turns).
Each time Lyney loses hp through a CA, he gains 1 prop stack, max 5. When he uses his E, he does an aoe blast that does increased dmg and gives increased healing to Lyney based on how many prop stacks he has (while clearing the stacks). His E will also detonate any existing cat for aoe dmg. His E has a cd of 3 turns (can only be used once every 3 turns). His burst does a nuke blast, while creating a taunting cat and giving him 1 stack.
Lyney has this 'safety cushion' that prevents his CA from putting his hp below 60%. On the other hand, Blade can easily reach 1 HP in battle.
E summons creatures that deal blast hydro dmg each turn. (The creatures can work like a summon like JY's LL or Topaz's Numby, with their own speed, action value, and turn sequence.) They can also drain team hp if >50% hp. The more allies >50% hp, the more dmg the creatures do. Creatures stay on field 5 turns (cf Albedo's E). Alternate E mode summons singer that heals character with lowest hp each turn.
During Q, she gains 1 fanfare point for each 1% hp change in team hp. The more fanfare points she has the more dmg bonus she gives to the party (or the more healing her singer does). The Q state lasts 3-4 turns.
This is an example of frontloading damage. Her NA costs 5 cryo dice and does 2 dmg to all opponents: 2 cryo dmg to active opponent and 2 piercing dmg to standby. Piercing dmg is non-elemental (physical?), cannot be buffed, and goes through shields and dmg immunity.
It is interesting why piercing dmg was chosen rather than just cryo dmg. Does it have to do with elemental reactions?
In TCG, her E gives electro infusion for 2 turns. Her Q does an aoe nuke: 4 electro to main, 3 piercing dmg to others.
So she is like Alhaitham with the E infusion allowing quicken and hyperbloom. Alhaitham has the added mechanic of mirrors increasing dmg and extending duration of infusion.
Overloaded will switch the active character. 'Switching' characters is not really a thing in HSR. If one really wants to implement such a mechanic, one can reduce the speed of certain characters.
Also superconduct should have the additional effect of phys res shred: allow physical dmg to deal +1 more dmg.
There is a card 'Falls of Fortune' that makes both sides spend more dice per action. This can be implemented in HSR by making each action cost +1 (or more) sp. That could be rip to QQ/Lunae but alleviated by supports that give more sp like Hanya.
Currently Phantylia and her lotuses can steal sp (she also has the prana hp block effect).
Here is an idea for how Genshin could monetize TCG. Currently, an f2p player can access any of the TCG cards. Introduce gacha banners for each TCG character card. Allow cards to have multiple constellations/eidolons to encourage players to spend more on banners. Or even create a spin-off turn based game named Star Rail that does the same thing. (Shh, don't give them any more ideas...)
In TCG, the people assigning sort ids to character cards are playing games with the numbers 1, 4, 6, 8.