Mastering the 3-phase banner strategy in Honkai Star Rail 3.8 requires understanding pity carry-over mechanics and precise pull calculations. This guide demonstrates how to safely roll pity from Phase 1 or 2 into Phase 3 (January 28 - February 12, 2026) without wasting Stellar Jades.
Understanding HSR's 3-Phase Banner System in Version 3.8
Honkai Star Rail operates on a structured banner rotation where each version introduces three distinct phases lasting 15-21 days. Version 3.8's Phase 3 runs January 28 - February 12, 2026, featuring Aglaea (Lightning Remembrance DPS) and Sunday (Imaginary Harmony support) as 5-star rate-ups. 4-stars include Tingyun, Yukong, and Dan Heng.
Critical mechanic: Your pity counter carries over to the next Character Event Warp of the same type, regardless of phase. Pulls accumulated on Phase 1 transfer directly to Phase 2 and Phase 3. Light Cone Event Warps maintain a separate counter.
Each phase lasts 15-21 days, giving you ~6 weeks per version to accumulate resources. Phase 3's 15-day duration provides approximately 4,000-5,000 Stellar Jades from F2P sources.
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How Pity Carries Over Between Phases
Every pull on a Character Event Warp increments a hidden counter that persists until you receive a 5-star. This counter doesn't reset when new phases begin—it transfers completely to the next Character Event Warp.
Your guarantee status also carries over. If you lost the 50/50 on Phase 1 and received a standard 5-star, your next 5-star on any subsequent Character Event Warp is guaranteed to be the featured character.
Light Cone Event Warps operate independently with different thresholds: hard pity at 80 warps (vs 90 for characters), soft pity around 65 warps, and 75% featured rate (vs 50%). Carry-over principles remain identical.
Version 3.8 F2P Income
F2P players can expect 8,000-10,000 total Stellar Jades across all three phases:
Gift of Odyssey: 1,600 Jade value in Special Passes
Endgame modes (Memory of Chaos, Pure Fiction, Apocalyptic Shadow): 2,400 Jades per phase, 7,200 total
Events: 3,000-4,000 Jades
Daily training: 1,200 Jades
Phase 3 specifically: 4,000-5,000 Jades
Complete Pity System Breakdown
Hard pity: Exactly 90 warps for Character Event Warps (14,400 Stellar Jades). Guaranteed 5-star on 90th pull.
Soft pity: Begins at 74 warps. Base 0.6% rate increases substantially with each pull. Most players receive 5-stars between pulls 75-85 (12,000-13,600 Jades).
Average cost: ~14,400 Jades accounting for soft pity variance and occasional early drops. Conservative planning should assume 12,000-13,600 Jades.
50/50 System and Guarantee Mechanism
First 5-star pull (or after winning previous 50/50): 50% chance for featured character, 50% for standard 5-star (Bronya, Gepard, Welt, Bailu, Yanqing, Clara, Himeko).
Losing the 50/50 activates guarantee status. Your next 5-star on any Character Event Warp is guaranteed to be the featured character. This persists indefinitely until consumed.
Maximum cost for guaranteed featured character: 180 warps (28,800 Jades)—90 to lose 50/50, then 90 for guarantee. Realistic cost with soft pity: 140-160 warps (22,400-25,600 Jades).
Why Pity Never Resets Between Same-Type Banners
Pity counter is tied to banner type, not individual banner instances. Character Event Warps, Light Cone Event Warps, and Stellar Warp each maintain separate, persistent counters.
When Phase 1's Character Event Warp ends and Phase 2's begins, your accumulated pity transfers completely because both are Character Event Warp types. You can make 60 pulls on Phase 1, stop, and those 60 pulls carry forward to Phase 3.
Only scenario where pity resets: Pulling a 5-star character. Counter returns to zero, but guarantee status (if you lost 50/50) remains intact.
The Art of Rolling Pity: Core Strategy
Rolling pity means intentionally making pulls on a banner you don't want the featured character from to build your pity counter for a future banner.
Fundamental calculation: If you're at 0 pity and want a Phase 3 character, you need 74-90 pulls during Phase 3. If you safely build to 60 pity during Phases 1-2, you only need 14-30 additional pulls during Phase 3.
Risk: Accidentally triggering a 5-star during pity-building. An unwanted 5-star at pull 65 resets your counter to zero and potentially wastes your guarantee status.
Safe Zone: How Many Pulls Before Soft Pity Risk
Universally accepted safe zone: 60-65 pulls. At 60 pity, you're 14 pulls from soft pity's 74-pull threshold. Base 0.6% rate means ~0.36% chance per pull—low enough for comfortable risk management.
Conservative approach: Stop at 50-55 pity, leaving 19-24 pull buffer before soft pity.
Aggressive approach: Push to 70 pity when on guarantee status, accepting elevated risk because an early 5-star would be the featured character.
Step-by-Step: How to Roll Pity Into Phase 3
Step 1: Calculate Current Pity and Guarantee Status
Open Warp menu → Select Character Event Warp → View Details → Records tab. Count pulls since your last 5-star character.
Determine guarantee status: If last 5-star was featured banner character, you're on 50/50. If it was standard character, you're on guarantee. Never pulled 5-star = 50/50 by default.
Record both: Current pity: 23, Status: Guarantee or Current pity: 0, Status: 50/50.
Step 2: Map Phase 3 Target and Required Pulls
Identify specific goals: Aglaea, Sunday, both, signature Light Cones, Eidolons?
Worst-case calculations:
On guarantee: 90 pulls max (14,400 Jades)
On 50/50: 180 pulls max (28,800 Jades)
Light Cones: 80 pulls (12,800 Jades)
Realistic with soft pity:
On guarantee: 75-85 pulls (12,000-13,600 Jades)
On 50/50: 150-170 pulls (24,000-27,200 Jades)
Step 3: Determine Safe Pull Counts for Phases 1-2
Calculate total available resources through Phase 3's end: current Jades + Oneiric Shards + existing passes + expected income (8,000-10,000 F2P per version).
Subtract target requirement from total resources. Buffer determines how much pity you can safely build.
Pull limits based on buffer:
Minimal buffer: Stop at 50-55 pity max
Comfortable buffer (5,000+ Jades beyond requirement): Push to 60-65 pity
Always maintain emergency reserves
Step 4: Track and Adjust Based on Early 5-Star Drops
Monitor every pull session and update pity count immediately. If you receive unexpected 5-star at pull 45 while building to 60, your entire strategy changes.
Recalculate resource needs based on new situation. Early 5-star that consumed guarantee means you now need up to 180 pulls instead of 90.
Adjust Phase 2 strategy accordingly. Early drop might mean building fresh pity during Phase 2, or stopping entirely to preserve guarantee for Phase 3.
Real Example 1: F2P Player Securing Phase 3 Character with 40 Rolled Pity
Starting position: 15 pity, guarantee status, 8,000 Stellar Jades, 0 passes
Goal: Secure Aglaea during Phase 3
Resource calculation: 8,000 current + 9,000 expected = 17,000 total. Target requirement: 13,000 Jades (~81 pulls to soft pity). Buffer: 4,000 Jades (25 pulls).
Strategy: Build 25 additional pity during Phase 1 (reaching 40 total), stop completely during Phase 2, complete remaining 35-50 pulls during Phase 3.
Phase 1-2 Execution
Phase 1: Made exactly 25 pulls over 21 days, reached 40 total pity, stopped immediately. Cost: 4,000 Jades. Phase 1 income: 3,000 Jades. Entered Phase 2 with 7,000 Jades and 40 pity.
Phase 2: Zero pulls. Focused entirely on resource accumulation. Phase 2 income: 3,000 Jades. Entered Phase 3 with 10,000 Jades, 40 pity, guarantee status.
Phase 3 Result
Made 35 pulls during first week, reached 75 total pity. Received Aglaea on 75th pull as guaranteed. Cost during Phase 3: 5,600 Jades.
Total expenditure: 4,000 (Phase 1) + 5,600 (Phase 3) = 9,600 Jades for guaranteed 5-star.
Final position: Aglaea secured, 4,400 Jades remaining, 0 pity, 50/50 status. Saved 4,800 Jades vs 14,400 average cost.
Real Example 2: Low Spender Getting Two Characters
Starting position: 0 pity, 50/50 status, 12,000 Jades, Express Supply Pass active
Goals: Phase 2 character + Phase 3 character
Resource calculation: 12,000 current + 12,000 F2P + 9,720 Pass value = 33,720 total (~210 pulls). Realistic requirement for two characters: 320 pulls. Shortfall: 110 pulls. Strategy relies on winning at least one 50/50 early or favorable soft pity.
Phase 2 Execution
Made 70 pulls, won 50/50 at pull 78 (soft pity). Cost: 12,480 Jades. Remaining: 20,520 Jades + incoming Phase 3 resources.
Pity reset to 0, status returned to 50/50. Now needs 150-180 pulls for Phase 3 character (24,000-28,800 Jades).
Phase 3 Result
Phase 3 income: 5,200 Jades. Total available: 25,720 Jades (160 pulls).
Lost 50/50 at pull 82 (13,120 Jades), received standard 5-star. Placed on guarantee with 12,600 Jades remaining.
Received Aglaea at pull 77 on guarantee (159 total Phase 3 pulls). Total Phase 3 cost: 25,440 Jades.
Final position: Both targets secured, 280 Jades remaining, 0 pity, 50/50 status. Strategy succeeded by hitting favorable soft pity on both attempts.
Real Example 3: What Went Wrong - Cautionary Tale
Starting position: 45 pity, guarantee status, 15,000 Jades
Plan: Build to 65 pity during Phase 1, complete remaining 9-25 pulls during Phase 3.
Critical error: Made 20 pulls to reach 65 pity, but received unexpected 5-star at pull 58 (13 pulls accumulated during Phase 1). Early drop gave unwanted Phase 1 featured character.
The Mistake
Player built pity to 65—only 9 pulls from soft pity. Cumulative risk across 20 pulls (45 to 65 pity) was ~11.3%. Unacceptable risk when consequence is losing valuable guarantee status.
Safe approach: Stop at 55-60 pity max, maintaining 14-19 pull buffer before soft pity. Reduces cumulative risk to ~6.8-8.5%.
Compounding error: Made two 10-pull sessions back-to-back without checking results. Checking after first 10-pull (reaching 55 pity) would've provided opportunity to stop.
Resource Impact
Unwanted 5-star at pull 58 spent 3,200 Jades for zero value toward actual goal. Reset counter and consumed guarantee status.
Now needs 150-180 pulls (24,000-28,800 Jades) for guaranteed Phase 3 character instead of 9-25 pulls (1,440-4,000 Jades). 15,000 Jade budget insufficient even for realistic soft pity scenario of 160 pulls (25,600 Jades). Shortfall: 10,600 Jades.
Lessons Learned
Never exceed 60-65 pity when building on unwanted banners
Check results after every 10-pull session when building pity
Maintain resource buffers for unexpected scenarios (5,000-10,000 additional Jades)
Advanced Strategies and Pro Tips
The 30-Pull Rule for Maximum Safety
Limits pity building to 30 pulls maximum on unwanted banners, maintaining 44 pulls of buffer before soft pity. Cumulative risk across 30 pulls at base 0.6% rate: ~16.5%—present but manageable.
Trade-off: Reduced pity accumulation. Building only 30 pity means you need 44-60 additional pulls during target phase (7,040-9,600 Jades).
Leveraging Guarantee Status
When on guarantee, you can build pity more aggressively because unexpected 5-star gives you the featured character rather than random standard character.
Optimal strategy: Evaluate whether you'd accept current banner character as consolation prize. If Phase 1 character is strong and useful, building to 65-70 pity becomes acceptable risk.
If you absolutely cannot accept current banner character, treat guarantee status same as 50/50 and maintain conservative 60 pity limits.
Emergency Stellar Jade Sources
One-time sources:
Uncompleted Trailblaze Level rewards
Unfinished Simulated Universe stages
Unclaimed achievement Jades
Recurring sources:
Endgame mode optimization: Full clears provide additional 400-800 Jades per mode per rotation
Over Phase 3's duration: 1,200-2,400 additional Jades
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Should You Ever Pull on Unwanted Banners?
Makes sense when:
Clear Phase 3 targets
Sufficient total resources
Disciplined risk management
On guarantee status (can accept bonus featured character)
Doesn't make sense when:
Resource buffer is tight
On 50/50 status and cannot afford to lose guarantee
Phase 1 or 2 features characters you'd be happy receiving
Stellar Jade Budget Planning
Total Income Expected in Version 3.8
F2P baseline: 8,000-10,000 Jades across three phases
Gift of Odyssey: 2,400 Jade value (15 passes over 6 weeks)
Endgame modes: 7,200 Jades total (2,400 per phase)
Events: 3,000-4,000 Jades
Daily training: 2,520 Jades (60/day × 42 days)
Miscellaneous: 500-1,000 Jades
Express Supply Pass: Additional 9,000-10,000 Jades per version (300/day × 42 days plus daily Special Pass value)
Nameless Honor (Battle Pass): 4,000-5,000 Jades worth of resources
Allocation Framework for Multiple Targets
Prioritize based on:
Meta value: Powerful supports > niche DPS
Account needs: Characters filling roster gaps > marginal upgrades
Rerun probability: Rare reruns > frequent reruns
Budget per character:
On 50/50: 24,000-28,800 Jades (realistic to worst-case)
On guarantee: 12,000-14,400 Jades
Light Cones: 12,800 Jades (80-pull hard pity)
Sum targets' costs and compare to available resources. If total exceeds budget, eliminate lower-priority targets or accept 50/50 risk without guarantee backup.
When to Top Up: Smart Purchasing
Strategic purchasing: When close to securing guaranteed target but short by small margin. If at 160 pulls toward 180-pull guarantee and Phase 3 ending in 2 days, small purchase of 3,200 Jades (20 pulls) secures target.
Avoid panic purchasing during early phases. You have weeks to accumulate additional F2P income before Phase 3 ends.
BitTopup offers competitive pricing, instant delivery, and secure transactions for Oneiric Shard top-ups. Trusted choice for supplementing F2P income.
Common Mistakes That Waste Pulls
Misconception: Pity Resets Between Phases
False. Pity absolutely does not reset between phases—it carries over completely to next Character Event Warp. System treats all Character Event Warps as continuous sequence for pity purposes, regardless of phase or version.
Confusion stems from seeing different featured characters each phase. Counter is tied to banner type (Character Event Warp), not specific featured character.
Mistake: Not Tracking Pity Accurately
Approximate tracking creates uncertainty that affects every decision. Somewhere between 40 and 50 pity = 10-pull uncertainty range.
Solution: Check exact pity after every pull session. Warp menu > View Details > Records tab, count pulls since last 5-star. Record in note or spreadsheet with guarantee status.
Error: Pulling Past 60 on Unwanted Banners
At 65 pity, you're 9 pulls from soft pity. Cumulative risk in next 10 pulls: ~5.8%. At 70 pity, 4 pulls from soft pity, risk: ~5.9%.
Benefit of pushing 60 to 70 pity: Saving 10 pulls (1,600 Jades) during target phase.
Risk: 5-6% chance of catastrophic failure wasting guarantee and requiring additional 90 pulls (14,400 Jades) to recover.
Risk-adjusted analysis clearly favors stopping at 60 pity maximum.
Tools for Tracking Pity
In-Game Warp Record
Warp menu > Select banner > View Details > Records tab. Shows last 6 months of pull history.
To calculate current pity: Start from top (most recent pull), count downward until you reach gold-background 5-star. Number of entries between top and that 5-star = current pity.
For guarantee status: Check whether most recent 5-star was featured banner character (50/50 status) or standard character (guarantee status).
Manual Calculation Method
After each pull session:
Open Records tab
Identify most recent 5-star (gold background)
Count all entries above it
Add any pulls just made
Record pity count + guarantee status
What to Record
Essential data:
Current pity count
Guarantee status (50/50 or guarantee)
Current Stellar Jade balance
Current Oneiric Shard balance
Current Star Rail Pass inventory
Supplementary data:
Pulls made per session
5-star characters received with timestamps
4-star characters received
Jades spent per session
For multi-phase planning:
Projected income by phase
Target characters with required pulls
Decision points (when to stop building, when to start pulling)
Decision Framework: Which Phase Deserves Your Pity?
Meta Value Assessment for 3.8 Characters
Aglaea: First Remembrance path character, summon-based DPS archetype. Meta value depends on whether Remembrance path becomes dominant. Unique mechanics and strong multipliers suggest high potential.
Sunday: Premium Harmony support with energy restoration, damage buffs, action advancement. High meta value due to versatility and support role scarcity. Strong supports remain relevant longer than DPS.
4-star rate-ups: Tingyun Eidolons improve energy generation and buffs for Hypercarry teams. Yukong constellations enhance CRIT buffs. Dan Heng constellations provide incremental improvements.
Account Needs vs Character Strength
Character filling roster gap > marginally stronger character in covered role.
Priority drivers:
Team composition requirements
Resource investment capacity (ascension materials, Credits, Traces of Destiny)
Immediate problem-solving vs incremental improvements
Rerun Availability
Characters without reruns in 6+ months face higher urgency. Missing them might mean waiting another 6-12 months.
Aglaea: New character, no rerun history. As first Remembrance path character, might receive priority reruns.
Sunday: Likely follows standard patterns for strong supports—expect reruns every 4-6 versions.
FAQ
How does pity carry over between banner phases in HSR?
Pity carries over completely between same-type banners regardless of phase. Character Event Warp pity transfers from Phase 1 to Phase 2 to Phase 3 without reset. Counter only resets when you receive a 5-star character. Guarantee status also carries over indefinitely until consumed.
What is the soft pity rate in Honkai Star Rail 3.8?
Soft pity begins at pull 74 for Character Event Warps. Base 0.6% 5-star rate increases substantially with each subsequent pull. Most players receive 5-star between pulls 75-85. Hard pity guarantees 5-star at exactly pull 90. Light Cone Event Warps: soft pity at 65, hard pity at 80.
Can I roll pity from Phase 1 to Phase 3 without pulling in Phase 2?
Yes. Build pity during Phase 1, make zero pulls during Phase 2, and accumulated pity carries directly to Phase 3. Pity counter persists across all Character Event Warps regardless of whether you skip intermediate phases.
How many Stellar Jades do I need for guaranteed character in HSR?
Worst-case: 28,800 Jades (180 pulls)—90 to lose 50/50, then 90 for guarantee. Realistic with soft pity: 24,000-27,200 Jades (150-170 pulls). If already on guarantee: max 14,400 Jades (90 pulls) or 12,000-13,600 Jades (75-85 pulls) with soft pity.
Does pity reset between different banner phases?
No. Pity only resets when you receive a 5-star character, not when new phase begins. Your 60 pulls on Phase 1 count fully toward Phase 3 because both are Character Event Warps. Pity counter is tied to banner type, not specific featured character.
How to track pity counter in Honkai Star Rail?
Warp menu > Select banner > View Details > Records tab. Count pulls since last 5-star character. Count from top (most recent) downward until you reach gold-background 5-star. Number of entries between top and that 5-star = current pity. Record after every pull session.