Yunli (Honkai: Star Rail)
A straightforward sword huntress who destroys cursed swords.
Yunli is a playable character in Honkai: Star Rail, introduced in version 2.4. Her story centers on hunting down cursed swords forged by her father and destroying them.
Quick Facts
- Series
- Honkai
- First game
- Honkai: Star Rail (2024)
- Voice
- EN: Brenna Larsen
- ZH: Liu Wen
- JA: Shion Wakayama
- KO: Lee Ju-eun
- Weapon
- Sword
- Home
- Xianzhou Alliance
Facts from the source article.
Design and voice acting
Yunli was introduced as the protagonist of the story trailer "Ichor of Two Dragons, A Furnace of Fire" on July 25, 2024. She became playable on July 31, 2024. Yunli is a straightforward sword huntress from the Xianzhou Zhuming, tasked with destroying cursed swords. The Xianzhou Zhuming, led by Huaiyan, is known for its forging technology, supplying most of the Xianzhou Alliance's weapons. Yunli wields a sword called "Old Mettle" and enjoys collecting swords. As a huntress, she retrieves cursed swords and casts them into a furnace. She is voiced in English by Brenna Larsen, in Chinese by Liu Wen, in Japanese by Shion Wakayama, and in Korean by Lee Ju-eun. Wakayama described Yunli as a strong swordswoman who swings a heavy greatsword and throws it at enemies, adding that she has a big appetite and is not picky about food, which may explain her strength. Wakayama also characterized Yunli as quiet and gentle.
Appearances
Yunli's father, Hanguang, was an artisan on the Xianzhou Zhuming who fused heliobi into swords, creating cursed swords that eroded human nature. This caused a riot in the Flamewheel Octet Hall, and both of Yunli's parents died. She accompanied Huaiyan to the Xianzhou Luofu for the Wardance competition. On the way, she repelled borisin attacking an IPC transport ship. After arriving on the Luofu, an escaped borisin prisoner was attacked by Yanqing of the Cloud Knights with a flying sword that missed. Yunli used the misfired sword to knock the borisin down and took the sword, arguing with Yanqing over it until Feixiao mediated its return. To foster cooperation before the Wardance, Huaiyan had Yunli and Yanqing train March 7th, requiring her to defeat at least one challenger. March 7th accepted a duel from IPC envoy Skott after defending a teahouse employee, and Yunli and Yanqing intensified her training, enabling her to defeat him.
Reception
Yunli received positive responses from players and commentators, with fans expressing fondness through cosplay. Wu Yan from Game Teahouse noted that her design combines moe traits such as bare feet, twintails, and gluttony with a sense of divinity from her red, blue-green, yellow, white, and black color scheme, apsara-style clothing, and flame-patterned pibo sash. This juxtaposition contrasts with her role as Huaiyan's granddaughter and a combat-oriented Flamewheel Octet member. The contrast between her petite frame, heavy sword, and the weapon's name "Old Mettle" makes her image distinctive. Her name evokes Buddhist imagery of clouds and lapis lazuli, forming part of her cultural background. Gamersky identified her Dunhuang-inspired clothing, barefoot design, weapon name, and small build with a large sword as discussion points. Siliconera's Stephanie Liu argued that her design recalls Dunhuang apsaras and dance but criticized her trailer and combat animations for emphasizing shots of her bare feet, which felt abrupt given her young appearance. Liu also wrote that the action choreography did not fully continue the dance imagery, leaving that aspect underdeveloped on screen.
More in Honkai: Star Rail Characters
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced