If you’ve ever pulled a 5-star character on a limited banner only to realize it’s Qiqi instead of the new featured unit you’ve been saving primogems for, you’ve probably seen a pop-up mentioning a fate point added to your account. I was crushed the first time this happened to me during the Nahida rerun, until I realized that fate point is actually a huge win down the line. If you’re confused about how to get a fate point in Genshin Impact, what it does, and how to make the most of it, this guide breaks down everything you need to know based on hundreds of hours of banner pulls and testing across multiple accounts.
What Exactly Is a Fate Point, And Why Do You Want It?
Fate points are tied directly to Genshin’s limited banner pity system, and they don’t apply to the permanent standard banner at all. Each fate point is essentially a guarantee for your next limited 5-star pull, so you never have to worry about losing two 50/50s in a row for a unit you really want. For context, every time you pull a 5-star on a limited character banner, you have a 50% chance it’s the featured unit, and a 50% chance it’s one of the standard 5-stars (Jean, Diluc, Qiqi, Mona, Keqing, Tighnari, or Dehya). If you get the standard one, you earn one fate point, and your next 5-star on that banner type is 100% guaranteed to be the featured unit. That means if you lost the 50/50 for Wanderer last patch, you can save up for his next rerun and know you’ll get him as soon as you hit pity the next time. The system is designed to make the gacha less frustrating for players, especially free-to-play folks who can only save up enough for one pity every few patches.
How to Get a Fate Point in Genshin Impact: The Only Valid Method
Let’s be 100% clear up front: there are no cheats, hacks, secret quests, or event rewards that will give you free fate points. The only way to earn one is to lose a 50/50 pity roll on a limited character or weapon banner. I’ve seen dozens of fake TikTok and YouTube videos claiming you can farm fate points from daily commissions or chests, but all of those are scams designed to get clicks. The exact process to earn a fate point is straightforward, and it works the same for every player, no matter your account level:
The best part about fate points is that they never expire, so even if you wait six months for your favorite character to rerun, your guaranteed status will still be there when the banner drops. You don’t have to rush to use it before a certain date, which takes a lot of pressure off when you’re deciding who to pull for.
Common Fate Point Mistakes to Avoid
Even though the fate point system is pretty straightforward, I’ve made a few costly mistakes with it over the years, and I see other players make the same ones all the time when they’re learning how to get a fate point in Genshin Impact. First, never waste a guaranteed fate point on a unit you don’t actually want just because the banner is active. I did this once when I had a guaranteed status and pulled for Yoimiya on a whim, even though I was saving for Zhongli, and I had to save another 90 pulls to get the archon I actually needed for my team. Second, don’t confuse character banner fate points with weapon banner fate points. Fate points do not transfer between banner types, so a guaranteed status on a character banner won’t carry over to a weapon banner, and vice versa. Third, don’t pull on a random banner just to "use up" your pity if you don’t want the featured unit. If you have 60 pulls saved and you’re only 10 away from pity, hold off until a unit you love comes around, especially if you already have a guaranteed fate point active. That way you don’t waste your guarantee on a unit that will just sit in your archive unused.
Smart Ways to Use Your Fate Point for Maximum Value
Once you have a fate point (aka a guaranteed 5-star) banked, you have a lot of flexibility to plan your pulls around your favorite characters or meta units that will boost your team performance. If you’re new to the game and still figuring out how the system works, you might be tempted to use your first guaranteed pull on the first shiny new banner that comes up, but holding off for a unit you really want is always the better choice. First, prioritize archons and limited support units with your guaranteed fate point, because they rarely get power crept and will improve almost every team you build. Units like Zhongli, Nahida, and Furina are always great picks for a guaranteed pull, since they work in nearly every team comp and make exploring and spiral abyss way easier. If you’re more of a casual player who only pulls for characters you like aesthetically, that’s totally fine too! Your fate point is yours to use however you want, but it’s smart to save it for units that don’t rerun very often, like limited 5-stars that only come back once every 6 to 12 months. If you’re someone who cares about spiral abyss clears, you can also use your guaranteed fate point to pick up a strong DPS unit that fits a gap in your roster, like a pyro or hydro DPS if you don’t have a strong one already. Just make sure you test out the unit’s playstyle first, either by using a friend’s account or trying them out in the trial run on the banner page, so you don’t waste your guarantee on a unit you don’t enjoy playing.
Losing a 50/50 can feel frustrating in the moment, especially if you’ve been saving primogems for months for a specific unit, but the fate point you get from that loss takes a lot of the stress out of pulling for limited units. You don’t have to worry about saving hundreds of pulls just to have bad luck twice in a row, which makes the gacha system way more forgiving for casual and free-to-play players alike. Now that you know how to get a fate point in Genshin Impact, you can plan your pulls more strategically, avoid common mistakes, and make sure you get every unit you’ve been dreaming of adding to your roster. Just remember to only pull for units you actually want, and your fate point will end up being one of the most valuable resources you have in the game.