I still remember the buzz around Honkai Star Rail patch 2.0, when the Astral Express was finally preparing to take us to Penacony. That update introduced two of the most anticipated characters I had been saving for: Black Swan and Sparkle, who is also known as Hanabi. When the Closed Beta Test for patch 2.0 began, I finally got a clear look at Sparkle's early kit. Back then, she was being called Penacony's first Quantum character, and even though her beta numbers were subject to change, her identity as a skill-point-driven support was already impossible to ignore.

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Sparkle's Core Kit from the 2.0 Closed Beta

Looking at the leaked beta data, I could see a support kit built around team-wide damage amplification, CRIT DMG buffing, action manipulation, and Skill Point regeneration. She felt less like a traditional damage dealer and more like an enabler who could make the rest of the team function smoothly.

  • Basic ATK: One Man Show

Deals 100% of Sparkle's ATK as Quantum DMG to a single target enemy.

  • Skill: Dreamdiver

Increases an ally's CRIT DMG by an amount equal to 36% of Sparkle's CRIT DMG plus 16% for 1 turn, and advances that ally's action forward by 50%. If Sparkle uses this ability on herself, the action advance will not trigger.

  • Ultimate: The Hero with a Thousand Faces

Recovers 4 Skill Points for allies and grants them Cipher. Every ally with Cipher increases the DMG dealt by Sparkle's Talent by an additional 10% per stack for 2 turns. Energy required: 110.

  • Talent: Red Herring

While Sparkle is on the battlefield, the maximum number of Skill Points increases by 2. When an ally consumes 1 Skill Point, all allies’ DMG increases by 6% for 2 turns, stacking up to 3 times.

  • Technique: Unreliable Narrator

Using the Technique grants all allies Stealth for 20 seconds. Characters in Stealth will not be detected by enemies, and entering battle while in Stealth recovers 1 Skill Point for all allies.

What stood out to me immediately was how much utility Sparkle packed into her Skill Point economy. The Talent raising the Skill Point cap by 2 meant the team had more room to spend resources without running dry. Combined with the Ultimate restoring 4 Skill Points, she looked like a solution for Skill Point-hungry teams. The Technique also added a nice overworld benefit by letting the party avoid combat and enter battle with extra resources.

Trace Details from the Beta

The Trace information gave Sparkle even more consistency and pushed her into a strong Quantum support niche.

  • Diary of Years

Recover an additional 10 points of energy when performing basic attacks.

  • Artificial Flowers

The CRIT DMG increase effect provided by the Skill will last until the beginning of your next turn.

  • Symphony of the Night

Increases all allies' CRIT Rate by 5%. When there are 1/2/3 Quantum characters in the team, all allies deal 5%/15%/30% more Quantum DMG.

The third Trace was especially interesting to me because it rewarded Mono Quantum teams. With one Quantum ally, the team gained a small Quantum DMG bonus, but with three Quantum characters, that bonus jumped to 30%. Combined with the CRIT Rate buff, Sparkle looked like a natural fit for teams built around Quantum damage, especially for players who wanted to stack Quantum units together.

Eidolon Investment in the 2.0 Beta

Sparkle's Eidolons from the closed beta further strengthened her supportive abilities and pushed her Skill Point and damage-amplification themes even higher.

  • E1: Suspension of Disbelief

The duration of Mystery applied by the Ultimate increases by 1 additional round, and the target holding Mystery gains 12% Speed.

  • E2: Fictitious

The Talent's damage-increasing effect can stack 1 additional time. Each stack also causes the target to ignore 3% of the enemy's DEF when dealing damage.

  • E3: Dream Bubble

Skill level +2, up to level 15; Basic ATK level +1, up to level 10.

  • E4: Game World

The Ultimate can restore 1 additional Skill Point, and the Talent's Skill Point cap increase effect increases by an additional 1 Skill Point.

  • E5: Double Truth

Ultimate level +2, up to level 15; Talent level +2, up to level 15.

  • E6: Multiple Answers

The Skill's CRIT DMG increase effect is increased by an additional 40%, and this effect applies to all teammates holding Mystery.

From a gameplay perspective, E1 and E4 looked particularly valuable in that early beta. E1 extended her Ultimate's Mystery buff and added Speed, while E4 directly improved her Skill Point generation and raised the team's Skill Point ceiling even further. E6 turned her CRIT DMG buff into a much stronger team-wide effect, but it required a high level of investment.

Final Impressions from a 2026 Perspective

Looking back from 2026, I still think that early Sparkle kit captured the core of what made her exciting. The closed beta data showed a Quantum support with strong Skill Point generation, action advance, CRIT DMG buffs, and team-wide damage amplification. The numbers may have been adjusted before release, but the design direction was clear: Sparkle was built to keep a team moving while making every Skill Point spent feel more valuable. For players who enjoy speed tuning and resource management, that beta kit was an early sign of a very flexible and powerful support. Her masked, theatrical style also matched the dreamlike atmosphere of Penacony perfectly, and the kit gave me plenty of reasons to keep her at the top of my pull plans.