Wuthering Waves guide: what’s new in version 1.1

6.28.2024
By Jason Rodriguez, Contributor
Wuthering Waves has been out for a month now, and it's set to enter the next phase of its narrative arc. The version 1.1 Thaw of Eons update takes players on an adventure to a frigid mountaintop where dangers await.

Our Wuthering Waves version 1.1 guide takes a look at what you can expect during your travels. We discuss the new Resonators Jinhsi and Changli, along with their best-in-slot (BIS) weapons. We also look at additional content such as the Mt. Firmament area, the Sentinel Jue boss fight, and more.

New 5-star Resonator: Jinhsi

Role: Main DPS
Element: Spectro
Weapon: Broadblade
Skill-leveling materials: Waveworn Residue, Howling Core, and Sentinel’s Dagger

Early in your Wuthering Waves playthrough, you encounter Jinhsi, the mysterious magistrate of Jinzhou. With the version 1.1 update, Jinhsi can become a playable character if you manage to beat the odds with her convene banner.

Her kit primarily revolves around completing successful combo chains. The third strike of her basic attack sequence spawns a Loong Dragon to hit your foes, while her Forte Circuit requires her to gain stacks of the Incandescence buff from the damage dealt by other teammates. When completing her basic combo or casting her Intro Skill, Jinhsi unleashes a more powerful variant of her Resonance Skill. Additionally, her Outro Skill speeds up her Incandescence gains by lowering its internal cooldown.
Wuthering Waves Guide What S New In Version 1 1 Determination
All in all, Jinhsi’s playstyle calls for you to maximize her time on the field, while relying on your teammates to increase her Incandescence stacks further via their own abilities. Make sure you successfully do her combo chains to trigger her empowered Resonance Skill.

New 5-star weapon: Ages of Harvest

Type: Broadblade
Secondary stat: Crit rate
Perk: Celestial Blessing

The Ages of Harvest broadblade in Wuthering Waves version 1.1 is ideal for Jinhsi. This is due to its Celestial Blessing perk, which grants a stacking bonus with every basic strike. Once you have four stacks, the damage of your next Resonance Skill is increased. Jinhsi’s kit is all about following up her basic attack combo chain with her Resonance Skill, which means this weapon provides a lot of synergy.

New 5-star Resonator: Changli

Role: Main DPS
Element: Fusion
Weapon: Swordh
Skill-leveling materials: Metallic Drip, Ring, and Sentinel’s Dagger

Changli becomes available during the second half of the Wuthering Waves version 1.1 update. If you get her from her convene banner, you can make use of her fast attacks to defeat your foes. Her playstyle involves doing her basic attack combo chain (four hits) or casting her Resonance Skill to enter the True Sight state. You can then follow this with another basic attack or jump, with both moves bringing her closer to the target to deal more damage.

It’s also worth noting that strikes that are part of Changli’s combo sequence (as well as her True Sight state) hit multiple times. Additionally, you can use her fully charged Forte Circuit to unleash a stronger heavy attack or cast a massive area-of-effect (AoE) blast via her Resonance Liberation. Lastly, her Outro Skill empowers the Fusion damage and Resonance Liberation damage of the swapped-in teammate, which is great for quick bursts.

New 5-star weapon: Blazing Brilliance

Type: Sword
Secondary stat: ATK
Perk: Crimson Phoenix

The Blazing Brilliance sword is amazing for Changli due to its flat 8% increase to crit rate, as well as a stacking buff known as Searing Feather. Any damage dealt by the wielder (as well as Resonance Skill usage) adds more stacks that further increase the power of the Resonance Skill, up to a maximum of 14 stacks.
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New area: Mt. Firmament

Chapter 1: Act 7 - The Thaw of Eons is a main story quest which we will not spoil at this time. However, we can say that it takes you to a new area known as Mt. Firmament. Its snow-capped peaks and towering cliffs are home to various citizens and, naturally, more enemies too. Moreover, Mt. Firmament also presents its fair share of challenges and gameplay mechanics, including the following:
  • Windchimers - These glowing bells can be collected once damaged with an attack. Some people might even trade valuable resources in exchange for them.
  • Photonvaults and Photon Barriers - Certain locations in Mt. Firmament aren’t accessible by default due to a golden Photon Barrier that surrounds them. Look for devices that you can hit using ranged attacks to make the barriers disappear.
  • Leap Vaults - If you find ornate plates on the ground, stand on them for a few seconds until fully charged. These Leap Vaults send your character flying a great distance.
  • Chronosorter - You’re bound to find a few mini-puzzles while exploring Mt. Firmament, but Chronosorters are a bit trickier. Once activated, these devices allow you to change the flow of time within an area:
    • Dragging the timeline to the right advances the area forward in time. Conversely, dragging it to the left causes time to move backward.
    • This mechanic essentially changes the positioning of objects and structures, which may reveal hidden paths and additional rewards.
New major boss: Sentinel Jue

One more challenge awaits in version 1.1 of Wuthering Waves, and it lurks at the peak of Mt. Firmament. It’s none other than Sentinel Jue, who can be found in the Sphere of Time. This being has taken the form of a Loong Dragon, and you can attempt to best it in its own domain.

Sentinel Jue is a flying enemy, and its erratic movement while in mid-air makes it hard to target with conventional attacks. You must watch out for its abilities, including tail swipes, cyclone spins, and diving rushes. It even has a bombardment call near the end of the encounter once its HP goes below 15%.

Ideally, you should make use of your Resonance Liberation and Concerto abilities if they can hit the boss. Additionally, some Intro Skills and grapple points in the arena allow characters to jump higher to deliver attacks. Should you succeed, you’ll receive many rewards, including the Sentinel’s Dagger material needed to upgrade Jinhsi’s and Changli’s abilities.

New echoes: Sentinel Jue, Lumiscale Construct, Lightcrusher, and more

The creatures that you can defeat in the latest update will sometimes reward you with their Echo abilities. These include the following:
  • Jue - Attacks enemies and deals Spectro damage; can perform their Resonance Skill to trigger “Blessing of Time,” which deals Spectro damage over time.
  • Lightcrusher - Transform into a Lightcrusher that lunges and deals Spectro damage; can hold down the Echo activation button to prolong the transformation effect prior to lunging.
  • Lumiscale Construct - Transform into a Lumiscale Construct and enter a parry stance; can perform a counterattack upon being struck or interrupt a special skill to deal damage.
  • Glacio Dreadmane - Transform into a Glacio Dreadmane that does consecutive attacks; can be used while in mid-air.
  • Dwarf Cassowary - Summon a Dwarf Cassowary that runs forward and deals Physical damage to enemies.
  • Clang Bang - Summon a Clang Bang that follows enemies before exploding to deal Glacio damage.
Apart from the above, the Wuthering Waves 1.1 update has more activities in store, such as new Echo Challenges, Tactical Holograms, puzzles, companion quests, timed events, the Glorious Loong Pearl overworld quest, and others.

That does it for our Wuthering Waves 1.1 update guide. If you’re keen on venturing forth to a frozen mountain to obtain more rewards, then download Wuthering Waves, which is available now on the Epic Games Store. We also encourage new players to check out our beginner’s guide and Resonator characters guide.