I still remember my first encounter with Pollux, the Netherwing Husk. It wasn't just another boss fight—it felt like dancing on the edge of a knife where one misstep meant certain doom. This dragon born from death completely flipped my understanding of combat in Honkai: Star Rail with her cruel HP manipulation tactics. Forget big damage numbers; she'll politely leave your entire team at 1 HP before letting her tentacles finish the job. Talk about playing with your food!

Pollux's Brutal Mechanics

Pollux doesn't fight fair. Her whole gimmick revolves around "non-fatal damage" that drops your health to 1 HP without killing you outright. Then those nasty tentacles—The Long Arms of Sorrow—clean up the mess. Her toolkit introduces terrifying new mechanics:

Key Mechanic Why It Hurts
Non-fatal Damage Can't reduce HP below 1, but sets up lethal follow-ups
Atrophy Damage Ignores shields & damage redistribution—rip Fu Xuan users
Fragrance of Death Speed boost + healing when attacked during this state
Indulging Slumber Slashes your damage output until healed

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Her passives are equally nasty:

  • Damage Mitigation: 90% reduced damage from all sources. Yeah, she's tanky.

  • Dream of Demise: Building Desperate Bubble gauge when reducing HP, triggering Fragrance of Death at 100%.

Phase One: The Calm Before the Storm

Phase one lulls you into false security. No flashy ultimates yet, but she'll still drop your squad to 1 HP with "To Die in Aromatic Pain." This Quantum AoE hit also slaps everyone with Indulging Slumber. Pro tip: Save your healer's Ultimate for this exact moment! Her other phase one tricks include:

  • To Stay the Fallen: Brutal single-target Quantum/Atrophy mix

  • To Bury the Slumbered: Team-wide evenly distributed pain

  • Inky Fog of a Near Death Dream: Reduces damage taken while building Desperate Bubble

Those tentacles aren't just decor either. "The Living Shan't Flee" seems harmless... until enhanced to "The Dead Shan't Avoid" during Overdue Obituary state, hitting three targets.

Phase Two: When the Dragon Wakes Up

Phase two adds just one attack but oh boy—"Death Wishes For More Death" is an absolute team-wiper. You'll see Pollux's turn icon shimmering as a warning. This Quantum Atrophy nuke:

  • Devastates characters in Indulging Slumber

  • Delays actions

  • High entanglement chance

Breaking her Toughness can cancel it, but good luck reacting in time!

People Also Ask

  • ❓ Can shield units like Gepard survive Pollux?

Nope! Atrophy Damage ignores shields completely. Traditional healers are mandatory.

  • ❓ Why does Fu Xuan struggle here?

Her redistribution can't handle Atrophy Damage, and AoE bursts often KO her.

  • ❓ Is breaking the tentacles a priority?

Absolutely—they deal lethal damage after Pollux sets your HP to 1.

Building the Ultimate Pollux-Slaying Team

Your sustain MUST be a healer—Huo Huo, Luocha, Lingsha, or Gallagher. Shielders might as well stay home. As for DPS? Quantum and Imaginary rule here.

Premium Quantum Team

  • 🐉 Castorice (DPS): Eats Quantum weakness for breakfast

  • ❄️ Remembrance Trailblazer: Buffs Castorice's True Damage

  • 🎭 Tribbie: Massive DEF ignore + supplemental DPS

  • 🌿 Luocha: Attack-healing field saves runs

Break Effect Team

  • 💥 Rappa (DPS): Dominates with Super Break damage

  • 🎼 Harmony Trailblazer: Boosts Rappa's Break damage

  • 🔥 Fugue: Enables double Toughness breaks

  • ⚔️ Lingsha: Heals while dishing break-focused damage

F2P Savior Squad

Character Role Why They Shine
Qingque DPS AoE Quantum (SP hungry but works)
Remembrance TB Support True Damage boost for Qingque
Imaginary March 7th Sub-DPS Follow-ups & Weakness Break
Gallagher Sustain Attack-based healing via Ultimate

Gallagher's my budget MVP—land his Besotted debuff with Ultimate, and every attack heals your team. Lifesaver when Pollux plays her 1 HP games!

My Hard-Earned Tips

  1. Healer Ult = Panic Button: Hold it for "To Die in Aromatic Pain" aftermath

  2. Burn Fragrance of Death: Attack tentacles/Pollux to reduce gauge during this state

  3. Tentacle Priority: Eliminate them FAST after HP reduction

  4. Element Matters: Exploit Quantum/Imaginary weaknesses relentlessly

That first victory against Pollux? Felt like defusing a bomb. Every move had to be surgical—healing at just the right moment, bursting tentacles before they capitalized on 1 HP, praying her phase two nuke didn't line up before my healer's turn. What strategies saved your team when facing this nether dragon?