Understand Retracing Bolide
Useful when…
- Normal and Charged Attack damage while shielded
- A build that can maintain a shield on the wearer
What does it do?
Two pieces increase Shield Strength by 35%. With four pieces, the wearer gains 40% Normal and Charged Attack DMG while protected by a shield. The attack bonus is conditional on the wearer being shielded; the two-piece Shield Strength bonus does not itself provide a shield.
Who should consider it?
It suits an attacker who can reliably remain protected by a shield and whose damage comes from Normal or Charged Attacks. Desert Pavilion Chronicle instead activates from Charged Attack hits, then increases Normal Attack Speed and Normal, Charged, and Plunging Attack DMG for 15 seconds. That set does not state a shield requirement, but it has its own Charged Attack trigger.
What can interrupt its value?
If the wearer loses shield protection, the four-piece attack bonus no longer meets its condition. Nighttime Whispers in the Echoing Woods is another ATK-oriented alternative: its Geo DMG bonus follows an Elemental Skill, with a larger bonus while under a Crystallize shield or near Moondrifts formed by Lunar-Crystallize reactions. Its trigger and shield-related condition differ from Bolide’s shielded Normal and Charged Attacks.
Limitations and tradeoffs
- The four-piece attack damage applies only while the wearer is shielded.
- The bonuses target Normal and Charged Attacks, not all damage.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Assuming the set creates a shield or that its Shield Strength bonus protects an unshielded character.
- Counting the four-piece bonus while the wearer is not protected by a shield.