Echo Class Cost, Ranks and Rarity in Wuthering Waves explained
What are Echo Classes and Ranks?
Understanding Echo Class Cost and Ranks is fundamental to creating your best Resonator builds in Wuthering Waves since both play a part in how powerful an Echo is.
In Wuthering Waves, Echo Class Cost determines how many Echoes of each Class you can equip to a Resonator with the higher costing Classes being, of course, more powerful. Meanwhile, every Echo can be one of four Ranks as said Rank decides how strong an individual Echo is within its breed.
The above is only the beginning though, so read on to learn more about the interwoven world of Echo Class Cost, Ranks and Rarity in Wuthering Waves.
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Echo Class and Cost in Wuthering Waves explained
Echoes in Wuthering Waves are divided into four Classes: Common, Elite, Overlord and Calamity. Within these Classes Echoes are then, just like the Resonators, split across the six elements: Aero, Electro, Fusion, Glacio, Spectro and Havoc.
Resonators and Echoes are tied together through the Class Cost system. Each Resonator has a Cost Limit - starting with 8 before quickly upgrading to 10 at Data Dock Level 2 and increasing to 12 when you reach Level 9 - meanwhile every Echo has a Cost spanning between one to four depending on their Class.
The Cost Limit determines how many Echoes you can equip from each Class as the total Cost from your equipped Echoes can not exceed a Resonator's Cost Limit. For example, this means you can't equip three Echoes with a Cost of four when your Cost Limit is 10. So, when equipping Echoes, it's important to take this Cost into account alongside the Echo's Ability and stat boosts as, while a set up consisting of only the most powerful Echoes does sound desirable, it will ultimately leave you with empty slots. Try to find a balance between the exact Echoes you want to use instead to ensure you're using this mechanic to its full potential.
Here's the Cost for each Echo Class:
- Common Class - 1
- Elite Class - 3
- Overlord Class - 4
- Calamity Class - 4
An Echo's Class also determines the two main stat boosts it provides - one randomly selected from a pool and the other fixed for each Class. Check out our Echo Stats guide if you'd like to learn more.
Finally, an Echo's Class also plays a part in its rarity alongside another factor...
Echo Ranks and Rarity in Wuthering Waves explained
There are two factors which determine an Echo's rarity in Wuthering Waves - Class and Rank.
How Class plays into Echo rarity is pretty obvious - the higher the Cost, the rarer the Echo. This means it's easier to find Common Echoes compared to the Overlord and Calamity Echoes, which can typically only be earned by defeating Bosses.
Ranks, meanwhile, decide upon rarity within a specific type of Echo. In other words, the higher the Rank, the more powerful the Echo. For example, you can have three Chirpuff Echoes and, while they all have a Class Cost of one, their Ranks might be different.
Ranks range from 2 to 5 with each one being represented by a different colour and each will give you a different amount of Data Dock XP. This is useful as to find Echoes with higher Ranks, you'll need to increase your Data Dock Level! Each Rank unlocks at a specific Data Dock Level and you can check which Rank is currently available to you by checking Max Absorbable Rarity in your Data Dock.
Here are the Data Dock Levels for unlocking each Rank:
- Rank 2 - Available from the start
- Rank 3 - Data Dock Level 5
- Rank 4 - Data Dock Level 8
- Rank 5 - Data Dock Level 15
It's important to note that you can only obtain Echoes with the current stated Rank and the one below it; if you're Rank 4, for example, you only have access to Rank 3 and 4 Echoes. Thankfully, you can still receive the XP for any Rank you skip over, so, if you catch a Rank 4 Echo but only have Rank 2 recorded, you'll still receive the Data Dock XP for Rank 3.
As mentioned, Ranks also have an effect on how powerful an Echo is by determining the number of sub-stats it can have and its maximum level. It also dictates how much Data Dock XP you'll earn the first time you collect this Echo of said Rank.
To help you out, we've broken down the Max Level, Max Sub-Stat number and the amount of Data Dock XP given for each Rank below:
| Rank | Colour | Max Lvl | Max Sub-Stat Num. | Data Bank XP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Green | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| 3 | Blue | 15 | 3 | 10 |
| 4 | Purple | 20 | 4 | 15 |
| 5 | Gold | 25 | 5 | 20 |
So, when Echo farming, you'll want to pay attention to the Class, Element and Rank of the Echoes you find:
- Class gives you the Echo's Cost and plays a part in its stats, helping you decide whether it fits into your Echo setup for a Resonator.
- Element determines which Resonators it's best suited for and the Sonata Effects (set bonuses).
- Rank determines how powerful your Echo can become level-wise and thus also has a control over its stats.
Good luck finding Echoes and don't forget to keep an eye on those Echo Stats!