The path system provides a kind of formula or template for designing characters. Just select the path / character role and use that to design the combat abilities. In Final Fantasy, the analog of the path system is the job system.
As the saying goes: 一个萝卜一个坑 or one carrot for each ditch. All the roles are defined. Similarly, in HSR each character is assigned to one path/role and element.
Question: will Aeons be playable in HSR like how archons are playable in Genshin?
The path system is a bit different from Genshin. Paths are like character roles (dps, buffer, healer, etc.), archetypes, or functions. Each character belongs to a path. The paths include:
Leading examples include Seele (hunt), Jing Yuan (erudition), Silver Wolf (nihility). Of the above, erudition, destruction, and hunt are designed to do damage (dps/carries), whereas harmony, nihility, abundance, preservation have more supportive roles.
Of course, some characters can have overlap in function (can have abilities matching several different paths). But in HSR, each character belongs to one and only one path (which affects what kinds of light cone passives they can fully use).
If one applies this system to Genshin, it would look something like this:
Vacuum abilities such as Venti's crowd-control can count as part of nihility as they can disable enemy movement, similar to what Mr. Yang (Imaginary) can do by trapping the enemy. In such a case, taunts like Amber's bunny or Mona's mirror may also be counted as nihility for impeding enemy movement. Crowd-control, freezing, imprisonment, petrification can count as types of debuffs that negatively impact the enemy.
Interestingly, in TCG, things like Ganyu taunt are implemented by reducing damage taken, similar to Dehya's E. So TCG interprets taunts as preservation-type abilities. TCG could have also implemented a taunt as a summon, where the enemy would have a probability to attack the taunt summon (bunny, Ushi, etc.) instead of the character (this would probably be more feasible to implement in HSR given its taunt value system). In effect both implementations reduce the average damage taken by the team.
Other things like Chongyun's infusion are also a bit more unique than what the HSR path system provides (maybe Remembrance for freeze). They are in a class of their own, not really falling into any of the above paths. Also see more details in Genshin roles.
To illustrate the multi-tasking ability of some characters: Noelle fits erudition, preservation, and abundance. Bennett fits harmony and abundance.
Also, in HSR, there is not really any 'off-field dps' (like Dehya, Nahida, Albedo, Yae) as all the characters are on-field. However, there are characters that can do coordinated attacks with other characters like Tingyun, March, etc. Moreover, sometimes the term 'subdps' is still used for team-building in HSR (meaning another dps that complements the 'main dps').
The HSR paths with the vaguest definitions are perhaps destruction and nihility.
It seems hp sacrifice characters belong to destruction. But then there are other characters without hp fluctuation that still belong to destruction (such as Lunae). So sometimes it may not be clear what exactly separates erudition from destruction.
Another path with a vague definition is nihility. On the surface it seems clear that it corresponds to debuffers (res, def shred, etc.). But then it also includes characters that can apply marks and dot such as Kafka, Sampo, etc. (giving 'off-field' damage). This makes nihility a bit more broad than its purported definition.
In Genshin, one can split the dps category in two: on-field dps and off-field dps.
Difference between erudition and destruction: Xiao, Itto, Cyno are similar characters. They are burst dps units that can deal impressive aoe damage against mobs of enemies. However, there are some key differences. Xiao and Itto are more destruction type characters, sacrificing some of their stats for increased damage, whereas Cyno is more of an erudition unit and does not have any such self-sacrificing mechanism. Xiao sacrifices his hp (buffs dmg bonus), Itto sacrifices res (buffs atk), but Cyno does not sacrifice anything (just buffs his EM and scalings). Xiao and Itto also have 70 energy cost, whereas Cyno has 80 energy cost (but this is a bit less relevant).
The path of destruction is a kind of high-risk high-reward philosophy. It is about destruction not just of the enemy, but also of oneself. That is why survivability is part of the concept. When you create something so powerful that it will mutually hurt both you and your enemy, it is important that you are the last person left standing, so you can outlast your enemy. You make some sacrifice in exchange for much more power and damage. This is symbolized by the Aeon Nanook's path resonance in the simulated universe. This is also symbolized by the boss Svarog's move where he overloads one of his hands to self-destruct and hurt the player.
During WW2, the Japanese kamikaze pilots employed a similar type of strategy against the allies, where they flew suicidal planes to blow up and crash into an enemy, offing themselves in the process. Such a tactic does not always lead to victory. The important concept missed in the WW2 case is survivability. If you do not survive to begin with, you lose the game. So while destruction can be a powerful archetype and have its merits, having an excess amount of it might lead you off the path of survivability. It can be wreckless without moderation and lead to unforseen consequences without prudence.
The Mongol general Subutai was adept in the path of destruction. Subutai would often coordinate several different parts of the army across vast distances. He would send some troops as decoys or fakes to fool the enemy, to trap and surround them, before annihilating them with the main force. Subutai would use these kinds of strategies of sacrifice for bigger return to win battles all across Eurasia. While modern warfare is different with new technology, satellites and gps that can track enemy movement, the philosophy of a small price for victory remains the same, just adapted to the new circumstances.
The philosophy of the destruction dao is contingent on having enough survivability to begin with (whether through buffed hp, def, or dmg reduction), and then converting some of that survivability into increased damage. Destruction units tend to synergize well with Abundance units as the abundance path can heal the destruction units that sacrifice hp or other stats, essentially buffing their survivability (literally give an 'abundance') via more healing, hp, etc.
When we discuss philosophical things like paths and the dao, the language used becomes a bit more generalized, to accomodate for the detailed differences in kits across the broader concept. So it is important to have a number of specific examples to illustrate some abstract lines of reasoning.
In the simulated universe, some destruction blessings buff hp, increasing survivability. Several destruction characters, such as Arlan, sacrifice hp to buff their damage. Arlan's skill consumes part of his hp to increase his damage bonus. The more hp percent he lost, the greater his damage bonus. In such a case, having a lot of hp to begin with (as the blessing gives) helps keep him alive as even when he has a low percent of hp, it can still be enough to tank hits.
We can dive deeper into a specific example to illustrate the difference between destruction and erudition.
As discussed above, Xiao and Cyno are similar in that both use their bursts to buff their attacks and can do high aoe damage and spam their Es. But the difference is that Xiao sacrifices his hp, whereas Cyno sacrifices nothing. Xiao is a destruction unit, sacrificing hp in exchange for greater power, whereas Cyno is an erudition unit, just doing aoe damage without sacrificing much.
So Jing Yuan, the erudition unit, is actually more similar to Cyno than to Xiao. Jing Yuan does not sacrifice hp or much else, but still does aoe damage. In fact, a destruction character like Blade that sacrifices their hp is probably a bit closer to Xiao in terms of combat design.
Jing Yuan is the type of character that does not take risks but would rather live a peaceful and relaxing life. His 401k is conveniently handled by his employer, and he has access to all the benefits a large corporation can provide. He has access to many supports and teammates that can conveniently buff his damage. And he would probably invest in fixed income and bonds rather than high-risk high-reward instruments like options or derivatives. He has his life all planned out for the next 50 years and can live a comfortable bourgeoisie life without needing to make much sacrifices. And many ladies are attracted to him because they like a husband with a stable job, steady source of income, and cushy lifestyle. This kind of path is perfect for raising a family.
If you view erudition that way, it sounds like a great path to pursue. No risks! You do not have to worry about losses! You can comfortably do lots of aoe damage and win the game. So why on earth would someone pursue the path of destruction?
Let's discuss some downsides of choosing a life of comfort. Did we mention that Jing Yuan has to suffer from some of the things corporations do like having his speed reduced by 10 points, being put under someone like Clara for no good reason, having the lightning relic set give 20% atk whereas the physical relic set gives 25% atk, ascending with atk and crit as opposed to dmg bonus and crit.
If you choose the path of no risk, maybe your reward may not be as high, and you might have to tolerate things like this. By contrast, Xiao as a destruction unit is the kind of character that would rather sacrifice his own hp to defeat his enemies than tolerate these kinds of games.
Jing Yuan could have been turned into a voidranger for Phantylia and serve her the rest of his life, but he chose to make the self-sacrificing move of throwing a spear at himself to sever the ties. He got hurt in the process, but he was able to defeat the boss in doing so. This kind of self-sacrificing move is more in line with the dao of destruction. When Jing Yuan did that, he became less like Cyno and more like Xiao.
A life of no sacrifice does sound safe, but perhaps boring? The whole point of a destruction unit is that they can make a sacrifice or pay a price in exchange for greater power to defeat bigger enemies. This can result in near-death situations, and the ride is a bit bumpier, but the rewards are potentially greater, like a derivative or option as opposed to a bond. It can also make for a more interesting story, perhaps even separating the great from the greatest.
Ganyu is another example of an erudition unit in Genshin. She does aoe damage, but does not sacrifice much, instead living a comfortable life as a secretary of the qixing, an obedient and subservient corporate soldier who takes orders from a temperamental white-haired lady wearing a cyan dress. She is a character that does not need to take any risks or consume anything: she does not need to use her skill or use her burst. She only needs to use her charged attacks. This kind of playstyle is almost the complete opposite of a destruction character.
Jing Yuan, Cyno, Ganyu belong to the same class of erudition units that do not make much sacrifice to deal aoe damage. And this is reflected in their character design and lore: they have esteemed positions in the corporate hierarchy, and they live normal and comfortable lives without much change or turmoil.
This is contrasted with someone like Xiao, who is tainted by karmic sin and the traumas of his past, a yaksha who endures endless suffering, constantly making sacrifices to vanquish demons and evil, while possessing great survivability in combat (being able to jump to avoid attacks like Freya and even buff his own def with c4).
So do not compare Jing Yuan with Xiao. That is a gross misrepresentation of how the two guardians are portrayed and how their kits are designed. They are not that similar and differ quite a lot in the paths they choose. Jing Yuan is more similar to Cyno than Xiao.
Subdps as automatic dps: deals damage without having to be active. follow up attacks, counters (himeko, svarog, march) all subdps category. in genshin, subdps also sometimes called off-field, but need not be off-field. example: can use yae on-field and do nothing but E still does damage. main characteristic of subdps is automatic damage / coordinated attack.
jing yuan is kind of like a subdps as lightning lord is follow-up / automatic (damage built up by using jing yuan abilities). by contrast seele is pure on-field carry. luocha heals are automatic (reactive / adaptive / 'smart' healing). things that are automatic or allow character to make more moves in a turn are generally considered positive.
Yaoshi is the aeon of abundance, the dao of healing. This sometimes manifests itself in other games as white magic or holy white magic (聖白魔法). For example, Garnet Til Alexandros XVII (Dagger) of ff9 or Aerith Gainsborough of ff7 are two examples of white magic users (abundance units). Garnet / Dagger can also summon eidolons to deal damage and is sometimes designated as part of the 'summoner' job class.
In Star Rail, healers become much more important (than in Genshin) given that one cannot dodge attacks. But once one gets Natasha, there is no need to get another healer. For MOC, one can just use Natasha one side and then a preservation unit / shielder like March on the other.
Some healers in HSR can remove debuffs (such as Natasha). If there are healers in Genshin that could remove debuffs (such as corrosion), that would add a bit more variety to the cast of healing characters.
Even though characters can belong to many paths, perhaps one of them is their main path. For example, c6 zhongli is a shielder that can heal, while baizhu is a healer that can shield. There is a difference. Here zhongli is fundamentally a preservation unit whose main role is to shield, with the healing being reactive and secondary. By contrast, baizhu is an abundance unit mainly designed to heal as his shield is complete garbage weak.
To quote from the Star Rail main quest, the following are known ways an Aeon or path can disappear: "One: Paths with overlapping concepts will eventually collide, and the broader Path will engulf the narrower one. That's how Ena the Order was assimilated by Xipe the Harmony. Two: In a war between Aeons, the stronger side will annihilate the weaker one — that's how Tayzzyronth the Propagation fell."
In life, there are perhaps many paths, many different kinds of dao. Some paths may overlap and merge into a broader one. Mergers and acquisitions happen a lot in real life when there is synergy or redundancy.
Some paths might annihilate others. There may be competition in the market, with only a few survivors in the end. Perhaps there used to be a dao for archery. But now bows have been powercrept by guns, so now the dao of guns has engulfed the dao of archery. What this means is: in modern warfare, how often do you see soldiers using bows and arrows as opposed to missiles and tanks? Similarly, do people still need to learn how to ride horses when cars and airplanes exist? New tech can powercreep old tech, making some paths disappear and new ones take their place.
Tank, paladin overlap with preservation. Excalibur is often a weapon of paladin units. Excalibur features in the myth of Sir Arthur and involves pulling a sword out of a rock. This scene is emulated when the trailblazer pulls out the lance from a stone when meeting Qlipoth in Jarilo-VI, thereby embarking on the path of preservation.
Paladins center on the theme of chivalry (in final fantasy) and the knights of the round table. They specialize in defensive and supportive abilities. And this is seen by the various shielding, counter, and defensive abilities of the Belobog knights Dunn, Gepard, and the Silvermane Guards.
In HSR, Dunn can shield and counter. Gepard can also shield all allies.
In FF9, Freya is a dragoon character that can use the jump ability. This is like fly or dig in pokemon and allows her to avoid damage. After some time passes, she will nuke the enemy with her lance. During her trance state, she will remain airborne while attacking the enemy from up high. The jump ability is a signature move of dragoon characters in the FF series. The Highwind characters (except Alexander Highwind Tycoon) belong to this job class.
As of v1.1, there is currently no dragoon character in HSR (a character with a jump skill). Moreover, dragoon is not a class in HSR. However, dragoon does possess survivability (avoiding damage) and deals a lot of damage, so perhaps dragoon is a subclass of the destruction path.
Is there an analog in Genshin? A character that can jump to avoid enemy attacks and also plunge to nuke the enemy? That is Xiao, the polearm-wielding yaksha. Xiao's burst is similar to Freya's trance state, where Xiao gets to jump and plunge repeatedly over time. Being able to jump to avoid enemy attacks is a form of survivability, characteristic of destruction characters. There are other anemo characters that can jump or levitate to avoid enemy attacks such as Scaramouche. But Xiao is the premiere dragoon dps of Genshin.
So these are the characters that can fly. As for dig, there are several enemies in Genshin that can burrow underground to avoid attacks. These include the geovishap hatchlings, the wenut, the ruin serpent, certain ruin enemies, Apep, etc. The bathysmal vishap boss has a phase where they jump on a pillar and attack from above.
This also gives them some aerial immunity in combat. The blightdrake can also fly in air. The hypostasis cubes have periods of immunity. The jadeplume terrorshroom has a beserk mode. The ruin crab can shield itself. Some shadowy husks can also provide shields to themselves.
In final fantasy, the thief can steal items from enemies. Examples include Locke (ff6) and Zidane (ff9). Currently there is no HSR character with a thief ability. Moreover, there is no HSR enemy that can rob the character (like the bandits under the Golden Saucer in ff7).
In final fantasy, a paradigm is a combination of party members based on their paths.
Natasha has many equivalents in Genshin, such as Barbara. Arlan, Blade seem similar to hu tao.
Seele in Genshin: after defeating enemy, reset cd of E skill.
Himeko in Genshin: The key ability to replicate is Himeko's passive that automatically deals damage with the helicopter razor thing once she obtains 3 stacks. She gains a stack every time an enemy weakness is broken. In Genshin, not all enemies have gauge shields. Perhaps every time an enemy's hp falls below 50%, she gains a stack. But toughness meters in HSR can reset. We would need something that can reset in Genshin, so that Himeko can continuously gain stacks. Alternatively, not every character in HSR need to have an equivalent in Genshin.
Actually, having an automatic attack proc below 50% is more similar to what Herta does. So Himeko appears to be pretty specific to Star Rail, like Silver Wolf. Not every HSR character needs to be transferrable to Genshin.
It is possible to implement toughness in Genshin, distinct from gauge shields. Certain enemies like rifthounds, specters, the thunderbird, etc. have fury meters that can be charged using certain elemental attacks. Similarly, toughness can be represented as a meter over an enemy that can be depleted using specific elemental/physical damage. Once toughness is completely depleted, then the enemy is paralyzed for say 5-10 seconds, unable to attack. So breaking toughness can provide some additional crowd control.
When toughness is broken, enemies take additional damage (break effect). Moreover while their toughness meter/bar is intact, they will receive 10% reduced damage (similar to Fatui armor).
Toughness can be implemented for a specific group of enemies in Genshin or applied to all enemies. If it is only for a specific group of enemies, then bringing effects that depend on weakness break like Himeko's helicopter passive into Genshin may be a bit niche rather than applicable to all enemies.