Guide
How the kit works
Start with Barbara's Elemental Skill. It deals Hydro DMG around her and creates a Melody Loop. The loop periodically heals your active character and applies Wet to them and to opponents they touch.
If several party members need healing, keep Barbara on the field and hit opponents while the loop is active. Her Normal Attack hits heal your party and nearby teammates; a Charged Attack hit heals four times as much. Whisper of Water (NA) also deals Hydro DMG, and its Charged Attack costs Stamina.
Use Barbara's Burst when you need a large heal for your party and nearby teammates right away. She does not need to attack first.
Glorious Season reduces the Stamina consumption of characters inside the loop by 12%. Encore extends the loop by one second when your active character gains an Elemental Orb or Particle, up to five extra seconds. Outside combat, Barbara's cooking passive has a 12% chance to double a restorative dish after Perfect Cooking.
Build and why
For a healing build, use four pieces of Ocean-Hued Clam. Its two-piece bonus gives 15% Healing Bonus. The four-piece effect records healing, including overflow, for three seconds, then deals damage to nearby opponents based on 90% of the recorded amount. It can record up to 30,000 HP and works while Barbara is off-field.
Four pieces of Maiden Beloved are an alternative focused on healing: using a Skill or Burst increases healing received by the party by 20% for 10 seconds. Song of Days Past is another option; it records healing and uses it to increase damage from subsequent hits by the active character.
Use HP Percentage or Energy Recharge on the sands, HP Percentage on the goblet, and Healing Bonus or HP Percentage on the circlet. For substats, favor HP Percentage, then Energy Recharge and HP. Max HP improves Barbara's healing, while Energy Recharge helps her use her Burst more often.
Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers is the first weapon to consider: when you switch characters, it gives the incoming character 24% ATK for 10 seconds. Everlasting Moonglow gives Healing Bonus and improves Normal Attack damage based on Max HP. Prototype Amber is another option: after a Burst, it restores Barbara's Energy and heals the party over six seconds.
Leveling priority
For a healing build, I suggest leveling Barbara's Skill first, since it improves the healing you use during the Melody Loop. Raise her Burst next for its immediate party heal. Leave Whisper of Water (NA) until later if her attacks are mainly there to trigger healing.
Barbara's ascension uses Mora, Philanemo Mushroom and Cleansing Heart, along with Varunada Lazurite Sliver, Varunada Lazurite Fragment, Varunada Lazurite Chunk and Varunada Lazurite Gemstone.
Her ascension and talents both use Divining Scroll, Sealed Scroll and Forbidden Curse Scroll. Talents also need Teachings of Freedom, Guide to Freedom, Philosophies of Freedom, Ring of Boreas and Crown of Insight.
Constellations worth it
Dedicating Everything to You is Barbara's standout constellation. If she is in the party but off-field when one of your party members falls, it automatically revives that character with full HP. The effect can occur once every 15 minutes, so it is a safety net rather than a regular healing tool.
Vitality Burst is worth considering next. It reduces the cooldown of Barbara's Skill by 15% and gives the active character 15% Hydro DMG Bonus during its duration. The Hydro bonus is useful when the active teammate deals Hydro damage.
The Purest Companionship is another useful upgrade for a healing build because it adds three levels to the Skill. Gleeful Songs and Attentiveness Be My Power give Barbara Energy, but you can treat them as lower priorities. You still receive earlier constellations on the way to later ones.
Teams
Barbara fits teams that want a healer who can also put Hydro on nearby opponents. Pair her with Nilou and a Dendro teammate such as Nahida or Collei for a Bloom team. Barbara can stay near opponents with her loop active while keeping the party healthy.
For a different setup, try Kaeya as a Cryo teammate, or Xiangling as a Pyro damage dealer. Yelan is an option if you want another Hydro character who can contribute from off-field.
With Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers, plan the switch after Barbara's turn so the character who wants ATK enters next. Her periodic healing continues through the Melody Loop while that teammate fights.
Common mistakes
Do not switch Barbara out immediately when the whole party needs healing. The periodic healing from her Skill goes to the active character; her own attack hits during the loop heal the party. Use her Burst if you need a large heal at once.
Do not overlook the Wet status on your active character. the loop applies it to your own character as well as to opponents who touch them, so keep track of it during the fight.
Avoid building only for damage if Barbara is your main healer. Give her HP Percentage and enough Energy Recharge for the healing role you want. Also remember that Thrilling Tales of Dragon Slayers buffs the character entering after Barbara, not whichever teammate you choose later.
