All good games have a cheeky provider of information that you can’t help but love, despite their questionable business practices. In Kuro’s game, it’s Wuthering Waves Aalto. He’s a four-star character who uses pistols, resonates with aero, and deals damage along with providing a handy buff and taunt. Here’s how to build him well and use him in a team.
We’ve got all the new Wuthering Waves codes for you, and an up-to-date Wuthering Waves tier list ranking every playable Wuthering Waves character. If you need suggestions on a strong team to try, take a look at our Wuthering Waves Calcharo and Wuthering Waves Yinlin builds here.
Here’s everything in our Wuthering Waves Aalto guide:
Who is Wuthering Waves’ Aalto?
Aalto, an information broker and part of the Black Shores organization, is known for his elusive nature. You can get any information from him for the right price. You meet him early on in the story alongside the adorable Wuthering Waves Encore.
He got his resonance abilities when he was born, thanks to an odd occurrence with the mist on that day, which means he can shift into mist and move undetected. This works very well with his kit as a pistol-wielding, aero-using four-star character.
How to use Aalto
Aalto works best when you deploy his Mist and taunt avatar with his skill, then fire off some shots through said Mist to activate damage bonuses, and then when the time is right – swap to your aero-based DPS to activate a further aero damage bonus for them.
What are Aalto’s stats?
Here are Aalto’s base stats at level one and level 90, without any echo or weapon buffs.
| Stat | Level one | Level 90 |
| HP | 788 | 9850 |
| Attack | 21 | 263 |
| Defense | 88 | 1076 |
| Energy regen | 150 | 150 |
| Crit rate | 5% | 5% |
| Crit damage | 150% | 150% |
| Healing bonus | 0% | 0% |
| Aero damage bonus | 0% | 0% |
What are Aalto’s skills?
Aalto’s key abilities are his outro skill and resonance skill, though a lot of his kit amplifies his attack and aero damage.
Here are all of Aalto’s skills and attacks:
Aalto’s active skills
| Skill | Effect |
| Basic attack – Half Truths | Aalto fires up to five consecutive shots, dealing aero damage. The fourth attack in his combo spreads the Mist forward, lasting for 1.5 seconds |
| Heavy attack | Aalto enters the aiming state to fire a powerful shot. These deal heavier aero damage |
| Mid-air attack | Aalto consumes stamina to shoot consecutive shots in mid-air, dealing aero damage |
| Dodge counter | Use a basic attack after a successful dodge to counter the enemy and attack with aero damage |
| Resonance skill – Shift Trick | Mist Avatar – Aalto casts Mist and one Mist Avatar onto the field to taunt targets. The avatar(s) inherit a portion of Aalto’s HP and generate six Mist Missiles that deal aero damage Mist Missiles – Each projectile deals aero damage, which counts as resonance skill damage |
| Resonance liberation – Flower in the Mist | Aalto generates a Gate of Quandary in front of himself, dealing aero damage. When bullets pass through the Gate, they deal increased damage. The Gates last for ten seconds |
| Intro skill – Feint Shot | Aalto appears out of thin air to perform continuous shots, dealing aero damage |
| Outro skill – Dissolving Mist | The next character you use has their aero damage increased by 23% for 14 seconds, or until they swap off the field |
Aalto’s passive skills
| Skill | Effect |
| Forte circuit – Misty Cover | If Aalto passes through the Mist or Gate of Quandary, he enters the Mistcloak Dash state. Mistcloak Dash – Aalto’s movement speed increases and he consumes Mist Drops. Each Drop consumed generates one Mist Missile Mist Drops – Aalto can hold six Mist Drops at a time. When basic and mid-air attacks pass through the Mist and hit a target, he gains one Mist Drop |
| Inherent skill – Perfect Performance (unlockable at resonator rank two) | Aalto’s heavy attack always crits and can trigger once every 30 seconds |
| Inherent skill – Mid-Game Break (unlockable after Perfect Performance) | Aalto continuously recovers stamina when he’s in the Mistcloak Dash state |
What is Aalto’s resonance chain?
If you happen to get more than one Aalto on any of the banners in Wuthering Waves – or purchase his wavebands from the store – you can unlock levels of his resonance chain.
Here are the extra skills you get with his wavebands:
| Resonance chain sequence | Effect |
| Sequence node one – Trickster’s Opening Show | Reduces the cooldown of Aalto’s resonance skill, Shift Trick, by four seconds |
| Sequence node two – Mistweaver’s Debut | Mist Avatar inherits 100% more HP from Aalto. Increases his attack by 15% when he attacks targets that fall for the taunt |
| Sequence node three – Hazey Transition | When Aalto’s basic or mid-air attack passes through the Mist, two extra bullets get fired. These deal 50% of the damage of his basic and mid-air attacks |
| Sequence node four – Blake Bloom for Finale | Increases the damage of Aalto’s resonance skill, Mist Bullets, by 30%. He also receives 30% less damage in the Mistcloak Dash state |
| Sequence node five – Applause of the Lost | While in the Mistcloak Dash state, Aalto’s aero damage bonus increases by 25% for six seconds |
| Sequence node six – Broker’s Secrets | Flower in the Mist (Aalto’s resonance liberation) additionally increases his crit rate by 8%. When his heavy attack passes through the Gate of Quandary, the damage increases by 50% |
What’s the best weapon for Aalto?
As Aalto is a sub-DPS, you want to aim for weapons that will help his energy regeneration or boost attack. The best pistol for Aalto is Static Mist with an energy regeneration boost, but you can also use some four-star (and more attainable) weapons like the Novaburst or Cadenza, which regenerates energy for Aalto.
| Weapon | Effect |
| Static Mist (five-star) | Increases energy regeneration by 12.8%. When Aalto casts his outro skill, his attack increases by 10%. This effect lasts for 14 seconds |
| Novaburst (four-star) | Increases his attack by 4% when Aalto dashes or dodges. This can stack three times and lasts for eight seconds |
| Cadenza (four-star) | When Aalto uses his resonance skill, he gains eight concerto energy. This can trigger once every 20 seconds |
| Pistols of Night (three-star) | Increases Aalto’s attack by 8% for ten seconds when his intro skill triggers |
What are the best echoes for Aalto?
When picking an echo set for Aalto, it’s best to aim for a five-piece set of moonlit clouds or two pieces of sierra gale and two pieces of moonlit clouds for the energy regeneration and aero damage boosts. If you want to use Aalto as a main DPS, you’re better off equipping him with a full set of sierra gale echoes, however, he performs better as a sub-DPS and aero damage buffer.
The best main echo to equip Aalto with is the Impermanence Heron. A Chaserazor or Feilian Beringal can add some hefty aero attacks, but the buff you get from the Impermanence Heron can really add to your main DPS damage when you swap to them.
Aalto stat recommendations
When it comes to Aalto’s echoes, we recommend prioritizing options that have the following stats:
Main stats
- Energy regeneration
- Aero damage
- Crit damage/crit rate
- Attack
Sub-stats
- Energy regeneration
- Crit rate/crit damage
- Attack
What’s the best Aalto team comp?
Aalto works the best as a sub-DPS and buffer for Jiyan – and future aero DPS characters. Make sure to use Aalto’s outro skill to swap to them and activate the aero damage bonus.
The best synergies for Aalto are:
- Wuthering Waves Jiyan – as mentioned above, Aalto can provide a 23% aero damage bonus to Jiyan when his outro skill triggers. Aalto’s Mist Avatar acts as a taunt, drawing enemies toward it, which means you can activate Jiyan’s resonance liberation and hit them all at once
- Wuthering Waves Verina or Wuthering Waves Baizhi – both excellent choices for healers. Really, it depends on who you have – Verina can buff attack with her resonance liberation, but if you have Baizhi at S5, she can fully resurrect a team member who falls in battle. This is perfect if you’re tackling harder bosses
- Wuthering Waves Jianxin – She can benefit from Aalto’s aero damage bonus, along with providing some healing and a shield if you’re planning on using him on field a bit more
Here’s an example of an Aalto team comp:
| Slot one | Slot two | Slot three |
 Aalto |
 Jiyan |
 Verina |
What are Aalto’s ascension materials?
As always, you’ll need a few materials to ascend Aalto.
| Ascension rank | Materials required |
| One – level 20 | 5k shell credits and four LF howler cores |
| Two – level 40 | 10k shell credits, four wintry bells, three roaring rock fists, four MF howler cores |
| Three – level 50 | 15k shell credits, eight wintry bells, six roaring rock fists, eight MF howler cores |
| Four – level 60 | 20k shell credits, 12 wintry bells, nine roaring rock fists, four HF howler cores |
| Five – level 70 | 40k shell credits, 16 wintry bells, 12 roaring rock fists, eight HF howler cores |
| Six – level 80 | 80k shell credits, 20 wintry bells, 16 roaring rock fists, four FF howler cores |
Here’s where to find all of Aalto’s ascension materials:
- Roaring rock fists – this item drops from the Feilian Beringal boss located in the Giant Banyan tree, in the Dim Forest
- Wintry bell – these flowers grow around the Gorges of Spirits and Tolling Stream areas
- LF, MF, HF, and FF howler cores – obtain from normal enemies, the store, the weapon shop, or forgery challenges
- Shell credits – shell credits are the in-game currency, which you can obtain via farming, enemy and boss drops, through quests, or by selling things in the in-game store
What are Aalto’s forte materials?
To get Aalto as good as he can be, you need to upgrade his forte skills. Here are Aalto’s total forte materials and where to find or buy them:
- 25 LF howler cores, 28 MF howler cores, 40 HF howler cores, and 57 FF howler cores
- Obtain from normal enemies, the store, the weapon shop, or forgery challenges
- 25 impure phlogiston, 28 extracted phlogiston, 55 refined phlogiston, and 67 flawless phlogiston
- Obtain from the Marigold Woods forgery challenge, via the synthesizer, Jinzhou’s weapon shop, or Jinzhou’s souvenir store
- 26 monument bells
- Obtain from the Bell-Borne Geochelone weekly challenge
- 2,030,000 shell credits
Aalto skill priority
Aalto’s resonance skill and basic attack are his key skills to focus on, so build them in this order:
- Resonance skill > basic attack > forte circuit > resonance liberation > intro skill
Wondering what the next Wuthering Waves banner and Wuthering Waves update is? We’ve got you covered. Then, check out five-star characters Wuthering Waves Jinhsi and Wuthering Waves Changli to see what they’re about.