Version 7.0 opened Snezhnaya on August 12, 2026, and it did more than add a region. Stellar reactions rewrote how Cryo teams work, which means the four featured characters of this patch are not judged the way they would have been a version ago. Two of them anchor the new reaction system, and two of them belong to the Lunar-Charged setup that came before it.
Quick answer: The Flins and Ineffa reruns are the banners you can still pull on, and they close on September 22, 2026 at 14:59 server time. Pull Ineffa if you already own Flins or Columbina, pull Flins if you have no Lunar Reaction on-field DPS, and skip both if you are banking Primogems for the Cryo Archon.
Version 7.0 banner schedule and dates
Version 7.0 splits into two phases with no new 5-star in the second half. Phase 1 carried both of the patch’s new characters; Phase 2 is a pure rerun window.
| Banner | Featured 5-star | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Swan’s Shadow in Silken Ice | Odette (Cryo, Sword) | Aug 12 – Sep 1, 2026 |
| The Hearth’s Ashen Shadow | Arlecchino (Pyro, Polearm) | Aug 12 – Sep 1, 2026 |
| Astral Actuation | Ineffa (Electro, Polearm) | Sep 1 – Sep 22, 2026 |
| The Lone Light Knocks at Night | Flins (Electro, Polearm) | Sep 1 – Sep 22, 2026 |
Both Phase 1 banners shared Alyosha, Sucrose, and Lynette as the rate-up 4-stars. Phase 2 shares Aino, Lan Yan, and Iansan across the Ineffa and Flins banners.
Flins and Ineffa: the live Phase 2 decision
These two reruns are a package deal, and that is the whole decision. Flins is an on-field Electro DPS whose damage runs through Lunar-Charged, with strong AoE output and a build that does not demand exotic stats. Ineffa is his dedicated partner, providing off-field Electro, a shield, and Lunar-Charged support while still contributing personal damage.
Owning one makes the other far stronger. Owning neither means you are buying into a two-pull project in a patch where the Stellar reaction teams are the ones setting the pace.
| Character | Pull when | Skip when |
|---|---|---|
| Flins | You lack a Lunar Reaction main DPS, or you already own Ineffa and Columbina | You do not have Ineffa or Columbina, or you are saving for the Cryo Archon |
| Ineffa | You own Flins, you want a shielder that also applies off-field Electro, or you want an F2P-friendly support | You own neither Flins nor Columbina, or Stellar-Conduct is where you want to invest instead |
A representative Phase 2 team looks like Flins on field with Columbina, Ineffa, and Sucrose behind him, which is enough to work through Level 105 boss trials such as the Knuckle Duckle. Ineffa’s shield is what makes that team comfortable rather than fragile.
Note: Ineffa’s value is tied to Lunar-Charged. If your long-term plan is a Stellar-Conduct roster instead, she becomes a generic Electro shielder rather than a specialist, and that is a fair reason to pass.
How Odette and Arlecchino landed in Phase 1
Phase 1 closed on September 1, so neither is currently available. What they proved during that window still matters, because both will return eventually and both change how you should value the rest of your roster.
Odette is a 5-star Cryo sword user built as an off-field support. Her Elemental Skill puts a dancing double on the field that deals continuous AoE Cryo damage and grants the whole party a Stellar Glimmer damage bonus, and recasting it brings the double back to Odette for a finishing hit. Crucially, she is the only unit outside a flagship archon with access to both Stellar-Swirl and Stellar-Conduct, so she raises the ceiling of every Snezhnaya reaction team at once. She builds simply, mostly damage stats and CRIT, and she performs at C0.
The trade-off is that she is a Stellar specialist. Outside those teams she loses most of her identity, and her best output needs specific partners such as Sandrone, Yae Miko, Cyno, Wriothesley, Mizuki, or the Cryo Traveler. A party of Yae Miko, Odette, Alyosha, and Sandrone clears a Level 105 Chimeric Winged Lion in roughly 45 seconds, which is the kind of number that shows what the reaction stacking does.
Arlecchino is the opposite kind of pull. She is a self-sufficient on-field Pyro DPS with strong single-target and AoE damage, an easy build, and a long list of workable teams. Her weaknesses are unchanged: she cannot be healed during combat, and Mavuika still offers stronger overall performance in Pyro-focused accounts. Her Level 105 Chimeric Winged Lion clear at around 59 seconds is solid rather than record-setting, which is roughly where she sits in the current meta.
Stellar reactions explained: why Cryo teams changed
Snezhnaya’s new system is a rebuild of Superconduct. Stellar-Conduct, the Cryo and Electro pairing, creates a persistent field on the battlefield. Characters inside who can deal Stellar Superconduct damage keep that ability, while other Cryo and Electro units in the zone receive a 38% Elemental damage bonus. It is a team-wide amplifier, not a personal buff, which is why the reaction rewards full comps rather than single carries.
Stellar Swirl is the Anemo counterpart, triggered when Anemo meets a Cryo-afflicted target. Together the two are why older units moved up sharply in 7.0. Sandrone, Yae Miko, Cyno, and Wriothesley all scale better with Odette present, Mizuki gained a home in Stellar-Swirl, and Qiqi now slots into both branches while healing.
Free characters that reduce your pull pressure
Two units cost nothing and cover a large part of the new meta, which should factor directly into whether you spend this patch.
Alyosha is the 4-star Electro polearm user awarded through the Snezhnaya Archon Quest. His skill, Tactical Sweep: Thunder Blitz, is an armored dash that deals AoE Electro damage and leaves a Volt Beacon behind, pulsing off-field Electro and restoring energy when it triggers a reaction. He also buffs party ATK and heals on Elemental Burst hits, making him a flexible Stellar-Conduct slot rather than a specialist. He cannot enable Stellar reactions by himself, so his value drops outside those comps. After his Phase 1 rate-up ended, he joined the Standard Banner.
The Cryo Traveler is the bigger surprise. With the story-acquired Exaiphanes Blade and access to both Stellar-Swirl and Stellar-Conduct, the Traveler can trigger the new reactions independently and functions as a free sidegrade to Sandrone. If you skipped Phase 1 entirely, that is your entry point into Stellar teams.
Version 7.0 weapon banners
| Phase | Featured weapons | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Phase 1 (Aug 12 – Sep 1) | Whitelake Frostfeather, Crimson Moon’s Semblance | Odette, Arlecchino |
| Phase 2 (Sep 1 – Sep 22) | Bloodsoaked Ruins, Fractured Halo | Flins, Ineffa |
Bloodsoaked Ruins and Fractured Halo are tailor-made for Flins and Ineffa respectively, matching their scaling stats and reinforcing their kits. Even so, the weapon banner is only worth touching with surplus Primogems or Intertwined Fate, and only if you own the character on rate-up.
Saving for the Tsaritsa
Anastasya, the Cryo Archon, is confirmed as a future playable character but is not part of Version 7.0. No official banner window has been announced for her, and no dates for Version 7.1 have been confirmed either. Every previous Archon has arrived around the peak of their region’s story, which is why so many accounts are treating 7.0 as a saving window.
The practical rule is simple. Pull the character who finishes a team you already own, and let everything else go. If Flins is already built, Ineffa completes him. If Stellar-Conduct is your direction, the free Traveler and Alyosha carry you until Odette reruns. If neither applies, holding Primogems costs you nothing, since recent 5-stars tend to return relatively quickly.
