Note: This guide covers March 7th (Preservation) — the original free 4-star Ice shielder. For her Hunt swordmaster form, check out the March 7th (Hunt) build guide.
TL;DR
- March 7th (Preservation) is a free 4-star Ice shielder who protects allies, taunts enemies, triggers follow-up counter attacks, and freezes the whole enemy field with her Ultimate.
- Best relic set is 4-piece Knight of Purity Palace or 4-piece Self-Enshrouded Recluse. Belobog of the Architects is the best Planar Ornament.
- Day One of My New Life is her best all-around Light Cone. Moment of Victory is the premium 5-star option.
- Build DEF first, then SPD to 134, then some Effect Hit Rate for Freeze reliability.
- Her taunt shield is her most unique mechanic — she pairs perfectly with Clara and other counter-attack DPS units.
- E4 and E6 are her most impactful Eidolons and genuinely worth chasing.
- She’s entirely free and never powercrept out of usefulness — a strong choice for early-game and budget accounts alike.
Who Is March 7th (Preservation) in Honkai Star Rail?
March 7th is one of the first characters you get in Honkai Star Rail — she’s literally handed to you at the start. And before you dismiss her as a freebie placeholder, she’s genuinely one of the better sustain options available to players who don’t have access to 5-star Preservation units. She’s a 4-star Ice character on the Path of Preservation whose kit revolves around three pillars: protecting a single ally with a strong DEF-scaling shield, taunting enemies into attacking that shielded target, and unleashing a counter follow-up every time someone under her shield gets hit.
She was found frozen in a glacier with no memory of who she is. She named herself after the date she woke up. That backstory is exactly as charming as it sounds, and she carries that cheerful energy straight into battle. As of Patch 4.3, she remains a solid and fully free sustain option — particularly in counter-attack team compositions and Simulated Universe Remembrance runs where her AoE Freeze Ultimate has tremendous value.
March 7th (Preservation) Skills Breakdown
Basic ATK – Frigid Cold Arrow
Deals Ice DMG to a single target at 100% ATK and also hits adjacent enemies at 33% ATK. Not a strong damage ability, but it contributes meaningful Toughness damage to multiple targets simultaneously — which is actually one of March’s underrated strengths. She can chip Toughness bars on up to 3 enemies every single Basic ATK. Regenerates 20 Energy on use.
Skill – The Power of Cuteness
The core of her entire kit. March 7th applies a shield to one ally based on 38% of her own DEF plus a flat 320. This shield lasts 3 turns and does two important things: first, it absorbs incoming damage for the protected ally. Second — and this is the key — it increases the shielded ally’s taunt value, making enemies significantly more likely to target them as long as their HP is above 30%. This taunt mechanic is what makes March 7th genuinely unique among Preservation characters. She doesn’t just protect — she controls who gets hit. This is a massive deal in teams where you want a specific tank character eating all the hits (like Clara). A Bonus Trace also gives the Skill the ability to cleanse 1 debuff from the target on cast, which is a welcome addition for survivability.
Ultimate – Glacial Cascade
Deals Ice AoE DMG equal to 144% of March 7th’s ATK to all enemies and has a 50% base chance to Freeze each enemy for 1 turn. Frozen enemies can’t act and take additional Ice DMG equal to 30% of March’s ATK at the start of their turns. This is the most powerful crowd control tool available on a free unit in the early game. Against Ice-weak enemies the Freeze rate goes significantly higher. In Simulated Universe’s Remembrance path, this AoE Freeze is especially powerful since the Dissociation effect triggers massive bonus damage when enemies are Frozen. Regenerates 5 Energy per enemy Frozen, so hitting a full field of 5 enemies can give back 25 Energy.
Talent – Girl Power
Whenever an enemy attacks an ally who currently has March 7th’s shield active, March immediately launches a counter follow-up attack against that enemy, dealing Ice DMG. This follow-up can trigger a maximum of 2 times per turn. The follow-up isn’t huge in terms of raw damage, but it provides consistent chip damage and Toughness reduction on enemies that decide to test the shielded target. The interaction with taunt is perfect: enemies are pushed to attack the shielded ally, which then triggers the counter, which deals damage and reduces Toughness. It’s a closed loop that keeps working passively as long as the shield is up.
Technique – Intercept
At the start of the next battle, immediately applies March’s shield to the ally with the lowest current HP percentage. A handy opener that ensures someone has protection from the very first enemy action, no Skill required. Use it before tough fights to guarantee coverage from turn one.
March 7th (Preservation) Best Relics in 4.3
Best 4-Piece Set – Knight of Purity Palace
The classic Preservation relic set and March’s most straightforward build path. The 2-piece gives 12% DEF, and the 4-piece increases the maximum damage absorption of her shield by 20%. Since her shield scales entirely off DEF, more DEF means a bigger shield, and the 4-piece bonus increases how much punishment that shield can absorb before breaking. Straightforward, effective, and you farm it from the same domain as other DEF-based characters. This is the set to use if you want maximum shield durability above all else.
Alternative – 4-Piece Self-Enshrouded Recluse
The newer and slightly more interesting set option for March. The 2-piece boosts Shield Effect and the 4-piece does the same while adding a passive 15% CRIT DMG boost to any ally currently protected by the shield. If you’re running March in a team with a CRIT-scaling DPS — which you almost always are — this 15% CRIT DMG bonus is essentially free damage on your carry every time the shield is active. The tradeoff is that Self-Enshrouded Recluse is harder to farm and you’re giving up some pure shield absorption for an offensive bonus. Worth considering if you’re already building toward this set from other characters.
Best Planar Ornament – Belobog of the Architects
The go-to Planar Ornament for DEF-based Preservation characters. It gives 15% DEF as the 2-piece bonus, and when March’s Effect Hit Rate reaches 50% or higher, she gains an additional 15% DEF on top. That’s a total of 30% DEF from just the Planar slot, directly increasing her shield strength and personal survivability. Getting to 50% EHR isn’t difficult — a few substat rolls is enough. This set is the cleanest stat gain available to her.
Alternative Planar Ornament – Fleet of the Ageless
Gives 12% Max HP and increases all allies’ ATK by 8% when March’s SPD reaches 120 — which it will. If you’re using March purely as a defensive support without caring about shield size (maybe you have another healer handling HP recovery), the Fleet of the Ageless teamwide ATK buff is a nice passive bonus. Less impactful than Belobog for shield strength but provides team utility instead.
Relic Main Stats
- Body: DEF% (for bigger shields) or Effect Hit Rate (for more reliable Freeze)
- Feet: SPD
- Planar Sphere: DEF%
- Link Rope: DEF% or Energy Regeneration Rate
Relic Substat Priority
- DEF% — Your primary stat. Everything about March scales with DEF. The bigger her DEF number, the bigger the shield. Never stop hunting DEF% substats.
- SPD — Hit 134 SPD. This gets you an extra action in 4-cycle rotations and means more shield reapplications per fight, keeping the taunt and follow-up loop active more consistently.
- Effect Hit Rate — Get to 50% to activate Belobog’s bonus DEF. A secondary stat but important for both the Planar bonus and improving Freeze reliability from her Ultimate.
- Flat DEF — A solid filler substat. Every point counts toward shield strength.
Target Stats for Endgame
- DEF: 2,800+ (higher equals stronger shields)
- SPD: 134+
- Effect Hit Rate: 50%+ to activate Belobog
March 7th (Preservation) Best Light Cones in 4.3
Best All-Round Option – Day One of My New Life (March’s Signature)
March 7th’s own signature 4-star Light Cone is her best general-purpose choice and the one you should be building toward. It increases DEF by 16–32% depending on superimposition, which directly scales her shield strength. The real value is the passive: after March uses her Skill, all allies gain 8–16% All-Type RES for 3 turns. This teamwide RES bonus reduces incoming damage across the board — a subtle but meaningful layer of protection that stacks on top of the shield itself. It’s versatile, it fits every team, and the combination of personal DEF and teamwide RES makes it comfortably the best 4-star choice.
Best 5-Star Option – Moment of Victory
The premium Preservation Light Cone gives massive DEF bonuses (24–48%) and increases Effect Hit Rate significantly. The unique effect permanently increases March’s chance of being targeted by enemies and gives her additional DEF whenever she gets attacked until the end of her own turn. The issue is the taunt is applied to March herself — which means if you’re trying to redirect aggression toward a specific ally (like in a Clara comp), Moment of Victory works against you by pulling hits back to March instead. That said, in standard defensive setups where March is just a sturdy shielder, Moment of Victory is the strongest raw DEF tool available to her.
Good Alternative – This Is Me! (4-star)
Increases DEF and deals bonus DMG on March’s Ultimate proportional to her DEF stat. The bonus Ultimate damage is minor, but the raw DEF gain is useful and this Light Cone is widely available. A decent placeholder option before you’ve accumulated enough copies of Day One of My New Life.
Other Options
- Trend of the Universal Market (4-star) — Gives DEF and inflicts Burn on attackers when March takes damage. The Burn itself doesn’t do much, but the DEF is real and it’s obtained from the Warp pool easily.
- Landau’s Choice (4-star) — Provides a permanent taunt effect on March and DEF bonuses. Works in standard shielder setups but conflicts with the targeted-taunt mechanic of her Skill when you want a specific ally to draw aggro instead.
March 7th (Preservation) Best Team Comps in 4.3
Clara Counter Team – March’s Best Setup
This is the definitive March 7th team and it’s been one of her best uses since launch. Clara‘s entire damage system is built around getting attacked — when enemies hit her, Svarog retaliates with a massive counter follow-up. March 7th’s taunt shield forces enemies to target Clara constantly, meaning Svarog fires off counter attacks on almost every single enemy action. March also triggers her own counter follow-up simultaneously on those hits. The result is a cascade of follow-up attacks that can absolutely shred multi-enemy content. Robin buffs all follow-up attacks simultaneously, amplifying both Clara’s Svarog and March’s counters at once. A healer rounds out the team for the AoE hits that bypass single-target taunt.
Freeze Control Team
Pair March with another Ice character for a Freeze-focused team that combines her AoE Ultimate Freeze with the teamwide Ice synergy. Jingliu is a natural fit since she’s an Ice DPS who benefits from enemies being Frozen and the field being locked down while she attacks. Add Bronya for consistent CRIT DMG buffing and March handles both shielding and crowd control simultaneously.
F2P Starter Team
For newer players who are still building their roster, March 7th anchors an entirely F2P-friendly team that can clear most early and mid-game content cleanly. Trailblazer (Destruction) is a solid free DPS option early on, Asta provides SPD and ATK buffs, and Natasha is the free healer from the story. No pulls required for this entire setup.
- DPS: Trailblazer (Destruction)
- Support: Asta
- Sustain/Shield: March 7th
- Healer: Natasha
Simulated Universe Remembrance Team
March 7th is genuinely excellent in Simulated Universe when running the Path of Remembrance. Her AoE Ultimate Freeze triggers the Dissociation effect, which causes Frozen enemies to take extra DMG from all sources. Gepard provides a second layer of shielding to cover for March’s single-target limitation, and the two Ice Preservation units together make the team nearly unkillable while the Freeze AoE keeps enemy turns suppressed.
March 7th (Preservation) Eidolons – Are They Worth It?
March 7th is a 4-star, which means pulling Eidolons is more realistic over time. Her Eidolons are notably good for a 4-star character and some are genuinely worth going for.
- E1 – Memory of You: Every time her Ultimate freezes an enemy, she regenerates 6 Energy. In a full-field Freeze this can mean 30 Energy returned immediately — a substantial chunk toward the next Ultimate. This dramatically tightens her Ultimate rotation in content with multiple enemies.
- E2 – Memory of It: At the start of battle, March automatically applies her shield to the ally with the lowest HP percentage. Combined with her Technique doing the same thing, you essentially guarantee that the most vulnerable ally is always shielded heading into a fight.
- E4 – Never Forfeit Again: March’s counter follow-up attack from her Talent now also triggers when the shielded ally uses their own follow-up attacks. This is massive in Clara teams — Clara’s Svarog retaliations count as follow-up attacks, so every single Svarog counter now also triggers a March counter. Double the follow-up spam. This Eidolon is a huge damage increase for counter-attack focused teams and is the most impactful Eidolon for that specific use case.
- E6 – Never Surrender: The counter follow-up now also has a 35% chance to Freeze the hit enemy for 1 turn. In Clara teams with E4, you’re firing March’s counter on every Svarog attack — which means constant Freeze proc attempts. This turns March into a pseudo crowd-controller on top of everything else she does. A genuinely powerful endgame Eidolon.
March 7th (Preservation) Trace and Ability Priority
Level her Skill first — it’s the source of the shield and the taunt, both of which are her entire purpose. Her Skill level directly increases shield strength. Then level her Ultimate for higher Freeze DMG and a better AoE hit multiplier. The Talent goes next since higher Talent levels increase the counter follow-up damage. Basic ATK stays at level 1 throughout. For Bonus Traces, prioritise the Purify Trace that makes her Skill cleanse a debuff on cast — it’s an important utility unlock for survivability in debuff-heavy content.
How to Play March 7th (Preservation) – Tips and Tricks
The single most important thing to understand about March 7th is the taunt mechanic and its 30% HP condition. The shield only taunts enemies if the shielded ally’s HP is at or above 30%. If your shielded ally dips below that threshold, the taunt stops working. Keep an eye on HP and make sure you have a healer handling recovery so that the taunt stays active. Once it drops below 30%, you lose the directional aggro control entirely.
In Clara teams, always put the shield on Clara specifically — not March, not another ally. Clara needs to be the one taking hits for Svarog to fire. If you put the shield on someone else, you redirect hits away from Clara and lose the counter chain entirely.
Time your Ultimate for when you need crowd control or action delay rather than holding it indefinitely for the perfect moment. The Freeze buys your team a free turn while enemies are locked. In Simulated Universe with Remembrance, this is even more impactful — try to Freeze as many enemies as possible on each cast to maximise Dissociation bonus damage.
Also remember that her Basic ATK hits adjacent enemies. In multi-enemy fights you can chip Toughness on 3 enemies simultaneously with Basic ATKs. This is easy to overlook but genuinely useful for setting up multi-target Weakness Breaks.
Is March 7th (Preservation) Still Good in Patch 4.3?
She’s still a completely serviceable sustain unit for the content she’s designed for. You won’t be using her in top-end Memory of Chaos at the highest difficulty levels where 5-star sustain units like Aventurine, Huohuo, or Fu Xuan significantly outperform her. But for story content, lower MoC tiers, Simulated Universe, and especially in a properly built Clara counter team, she contributes meaningfully and remains one of the best free units in the game.
The fact that she’s permanently free and earnable without any pulls means she’s the first port of call for new accounts that need a sustain slot filled immediately. She also has a second form — March 7th (Hunt) — which is a completely different character with a DPS-focused playstyle. If you enjoy March’s energy and want to invest further, her Hunt version is unlocked for free through story progress and is one of the best free DPS options available to early and mid-game accounts.
